• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
Mad about Macarons
  • Recipes
  • French Food Guides
    • All Guides
    • Market Guide (fruit & veg)
    • Best Paris Tea Rooms
    • Food Travel From Paris
    • Paris Pâtisseries & More
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Videos
  • French Food Guides
  • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home • Blog Posts

    Paris Tuileries Garden - Where to Eat & Drink

    Published: Jul 1, 2016 · Modified: May 20, 2023 by Jill Colonna6 Comments

    Grab a chair or enjoy a stroll in the Tuileries Garden with my guide below of where to eat and drink. Either go with the crowd or enjoy the quieter cafés and take in some its history.

    view of sacré coeur from the tuileries

    Did you know you can see Sacré Coeur from the raised part of the gardens on the Orangerie side?

    Tuileries Amusements in Summer & Winter

    Summer season sees the start of Paris's popular annual fête or amusement park situated on the left side of the Tuileries Gardens. The Fête Foraine des Tuileries is open free to the public usually between June and August with a choice of 80 paying attractions.Paris Tuileries gardens

    With excited, bustling holiday crowds and entertaining wafts of candy floss (Barbe à Papa), waffles (gaufres), toffee apples (pommes d'amour), doughnuts (beignets), and marshmallows (guimauves), there's something for everyone - and for those of you like my daughters who love the high-sensation rides, you won't be disappointed.  I find it hard enough to even watch them!

    Likewise in winter, there's the Christmas Market with roasted chestnuts, vin chaud (mulled wine) and yet more rides.

    nutcracker soldiers in front of a hot chestnut stand in Paris

    As my teenagers are screaming to their heart's pulsing content, you'll find me strolling in the rest of the more civilised Tuileries Gardens. 

    Jardin des Tuileries History

    The Tuileries Gardens were first landscaped under Queen Catherine de Medici (widow of Henri II), who began the building of the Tuileries Palace in 1561 on the right bank of the River Seine.

    The word Tuileries refers to the tile kilns that previously existed on the site. So it comes from 'Tuile', meaning tile - which is also a famous French biscuit or cookie.

    See my easy recipe to make your own tuile cookies.

    statue in gardens with flowers
    The quieter corners in the Tuileries (Charles Perrault monument)

    Tuileries Palace

    The Palace was the Parisian residence of the French monarchs from Henry IV to Napoleon III. Before then, it was the Louvre Palace, originally built as a fortress in the medieval period then turned into a royal palace under Charles V in the 14th Century until the Louvre became a public museum in 1793.

    King Louis XIV transformed the Tuileries Palace residence in 1666, when he commissioned his favourite gardener, André Le Nôtre, to design a vast new park with elevated terraces around a central axis. He did this after completing the terrace at Saint-Germain-en-Laye, looking on to Paris from the west of the city.

    The Tuileries Garden was opened to the public in 1667, while King Louis moved to his new Palace at Versailles.

    Wooden sailing boats for the basins in the Tuileries Gardens

    In 1871 the Tuileries Palace was set on fire and although destroyed in 1883, we continue to enjoy the splendour of the gardens today which is more or less as Le Nôtre designed it with its some 63 acres (25 hectares) and water basins.

    Summer is the perfect time of year to stroll under the regimented shady avenues of lime blossoms and fill up on their heady fragrance.

    Parisian water fountain
    potable drinking water at the water fountains in Paris

    Where to Eat or Drink in the Tuileries Garden

    While the general central avenue tends to become crowded in summer, head towards the outer sides of the park if you're looking for more peace and quiet.

    Grab a few things from my picnic recipes and don't forget to fill your water bottle from the water fountains.

    drink stand in public gardens in Paris

    Otherwise, during peak season, be prepared to queue for crêpes, hot chocolate, ice creams, and more drinks at the Petit Farmers.

    A word on coffee in Paris: you'll find a here a mix of latté, cappuccino, américano but if you're looking for an espresso with a little milk, it's known as a Noisette (literally means hazelnut).

    outside seating with umbrellas in a paris park restaurant

    For something more substantial like a sit-down lunch, there are two main central restaurants.

    Le Pavillon des Tuileries. Pricing is reasonable - particularly their wines by the bottle (average 35 euros/ cocktails €13). Cheese and charcuterie plates, classic dishes and salads.

    Café des Marronniers. Pricing also reasonable (cocktails start at €9) with fresh fruit juices (jus de fruits frais), iced tea (thé glacé) and a good citronnade maison (homemade citrus-pressed lemonade). Citronnade is different to lemonade in that it's less fizzy and more tangy with pressed lemon.

    hedges in the Tuileries garden

    Jeu de Paume Art Museum

    Heading towards the elevated northwest corner of the gardens towards Place de la Concorde, is the Galerie nationale du Jeu de Paume, a museum of contemporary art.

    bakery stand in the tuileries garden

    Quietest Terrace to Eat/Drink in the Tuileries

    The Rose Bakery café is both indoors and has a stand here on the terrace. This is my personal favourite spot in the Tuileries garden, as it's so quiet. Get away from the main avenue with the crowds and just sit in the shade for a light lunch or teatime.

    This is more where the locals come. Either for a civilised summery picnic lunch, weekend brunch, light lunch or afternoon tea.

    empty chair by the fountain in a paris park

    So, what kind of flâneur or stroller in Paris are you?  Would you find a chair and opt for a coffee looking over to the Orangerie museum? Or would you be on one of those crazy summer amusement rides?

    This post was first published 1 July 2016 but is currently being completely updated.

    More Blog Posts

    • Jill Colonna and Carol Gillott, home chef and artist both in Paris
      Sweet Paris Paintings on the Map
    • cafe with red tables and chairs outside with view on eiffel tower
      Best Bakeries Rue Saint-Dominique (Near the Eiffel Tower)
    • chocolate chicks in a Paris window
      French Easter Chocolate in Paris (Traditional Shapes Explained)
    • 4 tarts in a pastry box
      Pâtisseries for Diabetics in Paris
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Email
    Jill Colonna standing in a French patisserie lab holding a giant whisk over an oversized mixer bowl

    Meet Jill Colonna

    Jill is both Scottish and French and author of the book and blog, Mad About Macarons since 2010. Here she shares over 30 years of experience of living the healthy food life with her French family in Paris - via easy recipes and local food guides in France.

    More about Jill

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Please leave a comment Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Made this? Rate this recipe...




    1. Thomasina

      July 11, 2016 at 11:54 pm

      Thanks for the tour Jill. Great to spend a day here with plenty to see. Yes I would find a chair and just watch the world go by only after walking all round the park. Andre le Notre was a very clever guy.

      Reply
      • Jill Colonna

        July 13, 2016 at 4:01 pm

        And don't forget you can borrow some boules from the new café so you can join in and play pétanque too, Thomasina.

        Reply
    2. Parisbreakfast

      July 06, 2016 at 1:30 pm

      I don't go to the Tuileries enough.
      You've inspired me!

      Reply
      • Jill Colonna

        July 06, 2016 at 3:29 pm

        I felt exactly the same way, Carol!

        Reply
    3. Christina | Christina's Cucina

      July 02, 2016 at 9:18 am

      How lovely, Jill! Just a perfect afternoon to stroll the gardens and then have lunch. The food looks delicious, so this is now on my list for my return to Paris. Oh, and I'm pre-ordering this type of weather, too! Merci! 🙂

      Reply
      • Jill Colonna

        July 02, 2016 at 4:28 pm

        Hehe. I often forget that in California's heat and drought that this would be welcome for you, Christina. It's a great little secret corner here ...

        Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Jill Colonna standing in a French patisserie lab holding a giant whisk over an oversized mixer bowl
    BIENVENUE!

    Meet Jill Colonna

    Jill is both Scottish and French and author of the book and blog, Mad About Macarons since 2010. Here she shares over 30 years of experience of living the healthy food life with her French family in Paris - via easy recipes and local food guides in France.

    More about Jill

    Recent recipes

    • rhubarb cake with almonds
      Rhubarb Cake (Gâteau à la rhubarbe)
    • 3 bowls of pea soup with fresh peas and pods
      French Pea Soup (Potage Saint-Germain)
    • dish of layered roasted vegetables in Provence
      Roasted Summer Vegetables (Tian de Légumes)
    • gratin dish of berries in a creme brulee cream
      Berry Gratin - A Light Crème Brûlée
    Palets Bretons French Biscuits

    SEASONAL

    Spring Recipes

    It’s spring in Jill’s French kitchen – get her collection of free recipes to celebrate French printemps…

    Spring recipes
    glass dish of chocolate mousse with cherries

    POPULAR

    French Desserts

    From Crème Caramel (flan), rice pudding, dark chocolate mousse (no cream) to crêpes, clafoutis and tarts – enjoy making our family’s favourite desserts, all with reduced sugar.

    French Desserts

    square brown pancake folded like an envelope with egg yolk in the middle surrounded with a little ham and cheese and side salad

    CLASSIC FRENCH DISHES

    Savoury Pancakes

    We all love the classic French pancakes (crêpes). Let's go savoury with buckwheat galettes with all the typical fillings. Also gluten free, they're just one of our many favourite family classics.

    Classic French Dishes
    pink macaron cookie with ruffled feet

    LOCAL GUIDES

    Best Macarons in Paris

    Looking for top quality Parisian macarons and going mad which ones to choose? I have you covered with my TOP 20 list of the best in Paris.
    As a local for 30 years with 2 macaron recipe books, I’ve tasted a lot to help you!

    Top 20 Macarons
    blue recipe book cover for Mad About Macarons

    BESTSELLER

    Mad About Macarons

    Scared to make the first move to make macarons? Jill shares all the tips and step-by-step instructions in her bestselling recipe book.
    It has inspired many now-professional macaron bakers since 2010!

    Get the book
    pink cover of patisserie recipe book Teatime in Paris by Jill Colonna

    EASY FRENCH PASTRY RECIPES

    Teatime in Paris

    Even more macarons and easy French pastry recipes. Each step-by-step recipe visits many best bakeries for an armchair walk around the City of Light.
    A must for all budding bakers and Paris-loving Francophiles.

    Get the book
    Paris map Mad About Macarons

    BIENVENUE

    Newsletter From Paris

    Stay connected with the free monthly newsletter from France.
    With seasonal recipes, tips and more spilling the tea from Paris.

    Sign Me Up

    Footer

    Jill Colonna logo Mad About Macarons
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
    • Twitter
    • Recipes
    • About
    • French Food Guides
    • FAQ
    Contact
    Newsletter

    Copyright © 2010-2023 Jill Colonna

    Terms and privacy