Le Comptoir du Relais

About Le Comptoir du Relais

Yves Camdeborde did not merely open a restaurant when he launched Le Comptoir du Relais in 2004 — he effectively created a category. What has since been named bistronomie, the movement of Michelin-trained chefs applying technical rigour to the casual format of the Parisian bistro, has its practical origin here, at the corner of Carrefour de l'Odeon where Le Comptoir occupies the ground floor of the Relais Saint-Germain hotel.

The restaurant operates on a dual system that reflects its chef's refusal to choose between accessibility and ambition. At weekday lunches and on the covered terrace overlooking the intersection, a brasserie menu offers straightforward bistro cooking: terrine, steak tartare, grilled fish, puddings. At dinner from Thursday to Saturday, a five-course tasting menu operates, prix-fixe and unreservable except months in advance, that demonstrates what Camdeborde's Bearnaise-influenced classical training can achieve within this format. Both are excellent. The tasting menu is occasionally revelatory.

The room itself is small and deliberately vintage in the 1930s Art Deco style that Camdeborde commissioned when he took over the hotel. Tightly packed tables, bentwood chairs, a long zinc bar. It is not spacious and does not try to be. The neighbourhood — 6th arrondissement, steps from the Theatre de l'Odeon, in one of the most beautiful intersections in Paris — provides the scale the room lacks. The terrace, looking out over Carrefour de l'Odeon on a warm evening, is one of the finest places to eat in the city.

Why Le Comptoir du Relais is Perfect for Solo Dining

Le Comptoir du Relais is among the most satisfying restaurants in Paris for a solo meal. The terrace, particularly at lunch, places you in the middle of one of the city's most animated intersections while providing the solitude of your own table. The brasserie menu — uncomplicated, seasonal, executed with the confidence of a kitchen that has spent twenty years perfecting it — does not demand engagement or decision-making beyond the simple pleasure of choosing well. And the neighbourhood itself, the book dealers along the Seine a short walk away, the Theatre de l'Odeon nearby, the cafes on the Boulevard Saint-Germain — provides everything you need for an afternoon that extends naturally beyond the meal itself.

Practical Information

Also Great for Solo Dining in Paris

Back to all restaurants in Paris — See the Solo Dining guide — Read our dining blog