Hotel Du Nord

The 10th arrondisement is a bohemian quarter of Paris and is scattered with lively, trendy bars and restaurants along the Canal St Martin. Hotel Du Nord was the site of a 1930’s romantic French film of the same title by Marcel Carne. Since 1885 it was a pit-stop hotel and brasserie for those working along the canal before becoming a boutique hotel to tourists in the 70’s, but it is now exclusively a restaurant.


A few tables line the pavement and there is a small terrace which must be great in the summer, but for a cold and rainy night in October, we were wise enough to be inside – we were also fortunate enough to be able to secure a reservation for 13 people at short notice, courtesy of our friend Sacha.

The bar area has a few small brasserie-style tables scattered around for the overspill from the dining area. During the day the comfy sofas and bookcases lined against the wall must make for a great coffee spot. Whilst the staff appear intimidatingly uber-chic with their retro woolen waistcoats and leftist flap-caps, the décor is classic and unpretentious: grainy black & white photographs adorn the walls in between old-style movie posters for the film that was shot here. Dusty ornaments from a bygone era like a vintage telephone and old perfume dispenser evoke memories of a forgotten period between the two wars.

Cocktails were reasonably priced and I started with a cocktail of the day which had gin, cointreau, pineapple and strawberries mixed in crushed ice.

The food is typical of modern Paris, with classic French favourites such as tete de veau, entrecote, and grilled fish fillets. Also some token dishes with a foreign flavor are thrown in for good measure: Iberian ham platters, monkfish skewers with lychees, millefeuille of raw tuna in a Japanese style.

Some of the starters we had:

Foie gras block with courgette chutney

Goats cheese ravioli with basil, rocket and parmesan.

Iberian ham platter

Pan fried foie gras with caramelized verjus and sea fig plant. Verjus is the extract of unripe grapes which is quite acidic and typically used in dressings as a substitute for vinegars. The sea fig (also called ice plant) is a really curious ingredient that I’ve never seen or heard of before. It has a soft, furry texture like sage but actually didn’t taste of much. The foie gras melts in the mouth and tasted fantastic. Aside from this dish, most of the other starters were fairly pedestrian.

For the mains, most of my neighbours had fish. Some of the other diners had the Black Angus entrecote or the Veal sirloin with black truffle mash which were both apparently very good.

Sea bream fillet with leeks cooked in carrot and passion fruit juice

Grilled sea bass fillet with endives poached in orange sauce

The millefeuille of raw tuna was served with crunchy vegetables and a sweet soya dressing. This was probably the best dish of the evening. The millefeuiile was crispy and the tuna was soft and fresh.

For dessert:
Apple crumble with strawberries

Chocolate Tart

Rice Pudding with stewed fruits

Caramel Cheesecake

The restaurant has a good atmosphere and very nice decor but the dishes lack any real creativity to make it anything more than a decent meal that's a bit on the expensive side: about 55EUR per person for three courses including wine.