Zoé Bouillon

The deceptively simple slogan at Zoe Bouillon – ‘bien manger!’ or ‘eat well!’ – promises something all too rare in the French capital – good, healthy eating at affordable prices. The restaurant offers five vegetarian menu formulas, such as €10.50 for a daily special and a sweet, or €13 for two savoury dishes (soup, salad, sandwich), a slice of cake and a dessert.

The welcoming dining room is filled with wooden tables, with a few more seats on the pavement outside. You order at the bar, where the staff are happy to explain all the possible menu combinations. The dishes come on a tray set with recyclable cardboard flatware: we loved a zingy pea soup with fresh mint with a dollop of crème fraîche, then a buttery ‘faux coucous’ made with barley and rich in carrots and courgettes, topped with a spoonful of green herbs. Follow that up with a slice of chocolate cake and another of apple and blackcurrant, and you certainly will have eaten well.