9 Places in Paris Everyone Should Visit at Least Once, according to Ina Garten

Getty Images / Noam Galai (Ina Garten), Getty Images / Maxger (map)

If you've always wanted to plan a Parisian getaway, but were never quite sure where to start, Ina Garten is here to be your personal tour guide. Garten vacationed there with her husband Jeffrey in 2022, and took to Instagram to share all of her favorite spots in France's capital city. Finally, we can literally follow in the Barefoot Contessa's footsteps.

"Back in Paris after 2½ years in a rabbit hole," Garten wrote on Instagram. "Granted, it wasn't a terrible rabbit hole but when you can't safely leave home, anywhere starts to feel a little claustrophobic. It's so good to be here and everyone is so happy!"

Related: 10 Places in NYC Everyone Should Visit at Least Once, according to Padma Lakshmi

Garten's favorite spots are primarily concentrated in the city's 6th and 7th arrondissements, so you could knock most of them out in just a day or two—leaving you plenty of room to scope out iconic spots that didn't make Garten's list. Read on for the nine must-see places on Garten's Paris itinerary.

Café de Flore

Ina and Jeffrey started their journey at this classic café on the Boulevard Saint-Germain. The Café de Flore has been a favorite of many iconic Paris dwellers over the years, among them Jane Fonda, Yves Saint Laurent and Albert Camus, making it an essential stop for those who love the city's rich artistic history. (You can read more about the history of the café itself on its website.) Here, the Gartens enjoyed a plate of chips, some Perrier with lemon and a glass of rosé, which sounds like a delightful way to unwind after a long flight.

Adriane M Fleuriste

To spruce up the space the Gartens stayed in for two weeks, Ina picked up a big bouquet of vibrant pink roses from a favorite florist. "Paris isn't Paris without a gorgeous bouquet of flowers," Garten wrote on Instagram. (She even doubled back to the florist at the start of week two to freshen up her bouquet!)

Poilâne

This stop on Ina's Parisian tour came with the sweetest message of all. "When Jeffrey and I came to Paris in 1971, we stayed in a small orange tent on the outskirts of Paris (we couldn't afford a hotel room!) but the bakery Poilâne was on my list of things to see (how did I even know about it??)," Garten shared on Instagram. "Now my favorite bakery is a block from our apartment and I go there all the time. If someone had told me then how things would turn out, I simply wouldn't have believed it."

Poilâne has multiple locations across Paris and is known for baking some of the best bread you'll ever find. You can actually order some of the bakery's items online if you want to enjoy a taste of France in your own home.

Barthélémy

A trip to France without trying an array of cheeses would be a wasted trip, per Garten's advice. She stopped at Barthélémy, a cheese shop on the Rue de Grenelle, to get her fill of sumptuous French cheeses. Based on the photos she posted, we're honestly not sure how Garten was able to leave without tasting everything in the store—and she feels the same way. "Too much cheese; too little time," Garten shared on Instagram. "The renowned cheese shop Barthélémy is my favorite cheese shop in the world and it's right around the corner!"

Café Varenne

Garten had a salad with warm goat cheese—yum!—and a side of frites at this café that sits mere minutes away from the Rodin Museum. While Garten dubbed this meal a "lunch of champions," we're still hungry to know where she ate her breakfast of champions that morning—a buttered baguette with jam and coffee.

La Grande Épicerie de Paris

Ina picked up a couple of tomato tarts from this enormous specialty food store for a tasty lunch, and we're pretty jealous. La Grande Épicerie is filled with all kinds of goodies, from glamorous pâtisserie sweets to piles of fresh veggies. Garten, a former specialty-food store owner herself, called it "the best specialty food store in the world," and we're inclined to trust her judgment.

Twenty-Two Club Paris

Leave it to Ina Garten to enjoy a meal at one of the city's most exclusive dining clubs. As you might have guessed, the Twenty-Two Club seats just 22 people at a communal table in the Palais Royal. If this experience isn't quite your style, you might have more fun at the restaurant whose team hosted the dinner Garten attended—Verjus Paris. We don't know all that Garten enjoyed during her expertly curated meal, but she did share a photo of the gorgeous tablescape and the hot smoked trout salad that was served for one course. "We will remember the evening forever," Garten wrote on Instagram.

Jeffrey Cagnes

Even if you're staying clear across the city from this bakery, Garten says Jeffrey Cagnes is worth the trip. At this little boutique in the 17th arrondissement, Garten was wowed by the pastries. She even posted a photo of a boxed raspberry tart that had us itching to buy plane tickets.

Maison Verot

The last stop on Garten's list is yet another shop of all trades. Maison Verot, a charcuterie shop with multiple locations in the city, is chock-full of all kinds of treats, from golden brown crème brulée to flavorful carrot salad. It's "all delicious," Garten shared in her post, adding that she was a fan of the crème brulée, pâté, salami and escargot.