A meal here is worth travelling to the edge of Paris for

4 hours ago 3

Ben Groundwater

The one place to eat in: 20th arrondissement, Paris

Restaurant Dandelion in the 20th arrondissement.Restaurant Dandelion

Where

Restaurant Dandelion

Why

Not many tourists make it out to the 20th arrondissement in Paris. This is about as far east as the city goes, before it becomes Seine-Saint-Denis. The Pere-Lachaise cemetery is here, a place of pilgrimage for fans of Jim Morrison and Oscar Wilde, though there’s little more reason to make the detour. Unless, that is, you like food. Unless you like French bistro cuisine that’s being gently nudged into the future, served at small tables under the dappled shade of plane trees, where the service is friendly and the lunches are long. In that case, you will be here to visit Dandelion, a modest bistro that is gaining a reputation as a place on the cutting edge of modern French cookery.

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Dandelion is the work of Antoine Villard, former sous-chef at legendary Parisian fine-diner Septime, and Morgane Souris, an accomplished sommelier. Their bistro is all sweetness and light, with gorgeous, energetic wines paired with imaginative dishes that call on French history while taking influence from around the world. This is a place to sit back, far from the tourist hordes, and just enjoy the experience of good food and wine.

Order this

The menu is tight – usually just a few choices for each course.Restaurant Dandelion

Villard’s tight menu – usually just a few choices for each course – changes frequently, almost daily, though you can rely on a mix of proteins ranging from primary cuts to offal, paired with seasonal vegetables and light sauces. Sweetbreads are a frequent feature, and well worth trying.

Eat it here

Australia has gone crazy for French restaurants in the last five years or so, so you have plenty of options here. For a similarly modern approach to French cuisine in Sydney, try Porcine (porcine.com.au). In Melbourne, Reine & La Rue is spectacular (reineandlarue.melbourne). In Adelaide, try Le Pas Sage (lepassage.com.au).

Dandelion (pronounced by the French “Don-de-LEE-on”) is set in a small square in Paris’s 20th arrondissement, accessible via the Alexandre Dumas metro station. It’s open for dinner Tuesday to Saturday, and lunch Fridays and Saturdays. Entrees are about €16 ($26), and mains €35 ($57). Bookings are essential. See restaurantdandelion.com

Ben Groundwater is a Sydney-based travel writer, columnist, broadcaster, author and occasional tour guide with more than 25 years’ experience in media, and a lifetime of experience traversing the globe. He specialises in food and wine – writing about it, as well as consuming it – and at any given moment in time Ben is probably thinking about either ramen in Tokyo, pintxos in San Sebastian, or carbonara in Rome. Follow him on Instagram @bengroundwaterConnect via email.