9th Arrondissement

A newish sister to the absurdly popular Ober Mamma, Pink Mamma is a welcome Italian-centric addition to the very French dining scene in Pigalle. The four flights that take you up to the most Instagrammable dining room—it has a giant skylight for a roof!—are well worth the sore legs. There are plants everywhere, haphazardly placed furniture, mixed prints—in fact, the whole place might as well have been airlifted from Rome, right down to the menu. House-made pasta, grilled proteins, and really excellent pizza.

The exterior of À la Mère de Famille—an emerald-green storefront with more windows than walls—looks like a jewelry box, or rather, a chocolate box; you can see the cakes and chocolates and towers of beautifully packaged bars from down the block. Open since 1761, one of the many pleasures of this particular confectioner is the breadth of old-world caramels, nougat, boiled sweets, and marshmallows. And nothing much has changed inside, either. Taking in the old tile floor, the floor-to-ceiling shelves stacked with preserves and syrups, and the elaborate table displays as you make your way to the ice cream counter (go for the chocolate) is an exercise in both nostalgic pleasure and calorie control.

Both the original in the 9th and the new Tea Room are the kinds of Parisian pastry shops you might dream of, with pretty tiled floors, powder-blue walls, old-world display cases, and dainty packaging. Both spots are great for stocking up on everything from molded chocolates to macarons, as well as traditional sweets, jams, and marmalades to take home as gifts—you’ll also want to grab a cream-filled pastry for the ride.

Organic cakes, gluten-free treats, Coutume coffee and market-fresh ingredients are the name of the game at this sweet, homey café. It’s a fixture of the brunch scene on the weekends, while on weekdays it’s the laptop crowd who dominate the space. Should you get hooked on their muesli, cookies, or cakes, you can pick up a few pre-made packs to bake at home, too.

Located in the up-and-coming Pigalle neighborhood, Paris’s old red-light district, this hotel offers an all-day café/bar that’s comfily kitted out in overstuffed couches and elegantly mismatched vintage finds, not to mention a dance pole—a clever reference to its roots. With a tapas-style menu and generous cocktails, it’s easy to while the evening away here until the jukebox turns on or the local DJ starts spinning.

The name and the pinup poster in the entryway hint at this Pigalle bar’s seedier past as a brothel, but take a closer look and you’ll find yourself in a full-fledged tiki bar, overflowing with pseudo-Polynesian flair. If the excellent rum-based drinks and retro vibe aren’t really your thing, then the other, perfectly balanced proprietary cocktails and extensive beer collection should keep you happy.

Parisians swear Pierre Hermé's macarons are the best in town, and we're inclined to agree. After all, the pastry wunderkind (he began his career as an apprentice to Gaston Lenôtre at the age of 14, before becoming the pastry chef of Fauchon when he was only 24) is known for infusing his ganaches with interesting (and foolproof) combinations, like his famous Ispahan, which blends rose, lychee, and raspberry. The chocolates shouldn't be missed either, and neither should the croissants.

A wildly ornate bas-relief ceiling—moodily lit by Versailles-worthy chandeliers—is actually not the first indication that this isn't your average bar (that would be the gigantic birdcage at the entrance). Occupying the former mansion of composer Georges Bizet (hence the name, Carmen), this Pigalle club gets particularly busy around fashion week, when any number of designers host their after-parties here. While DJs play until 4 a.m. on weekends, the space hosts more-civilized affairs, too: For example, the literary magazine A Tale of Three Cities uses it to hold a monthly book club.

Though it's arguably most famous for being the backdrop to Gaston Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera, its real acclaim comes from the fact that it's a stunningly opulent Second Empire masterpiece. While in its first life it was home to the Paris Opera, it now hosts the Ballet. It's absolutely worth making a night of it if only to see the Grand Foyer, plus The Palais harvests its own honey on the rooftop, which is served by two-starred chef Christophe Aribert in the recently opened restaurant, L’Opera.

Parisians swear Pierre Hermé's macarons are the best in town, and we're inclined to agree. After all, the pastry wunderkind (he began his career as an apprentice to Gaston Lenôtre at the age of 14, before becoming the pastry chef of Fauchon when he was only 24) is known for infusing his ganaches with interesting (and foolproof) combinations, like his famous Ispahan, which blends rose, lychee, and raspberry. The chocolates shouldn't be missed either, and neither should the croissants.