Le Relais Charbon — Restaurant in Paris

From the moment we stepped in, we were greeted with warm smiles and an incredibly friendly atmosphere. Despite the restaurant being very busy, the staff—two women impressively managing the entire place—handled everything with efficiency and positivity. They were reactive, attentive, and kept their energy high with big smiles throughout the evening.

As soon as we sat down, the waitress handed us the menus and immediately informed us that the onion soup was out of stock. While this might seem like a small detail, it was actually refreshing to see such transparency upfront—allowing us to make our choices without disappointment later. It’s rare nowadays to encounter this level of proactive service, and it set the tone for the rest of the evening.

What we ordered:

Drinks: Verre de vin Chardonnay 15cl. Starters: Assiette de saumon fumé, crème acidulée, toasts & rillettes. Mains: Tartare de bœuf Charolais poêlé gratiné au chèvre, accompagné de frites et salade. Confit de canard, pommes sautées et salade. Dessert to share: Moelleux au chocolat et sa boule de glace vanille. The food was magnificent! The dishes, especially the starters, were generous in portion and packed with delicious flavors.

When our starters took a little longer than expected, the waitress offered us peanuts to enjoy with our drinks, which was a thoughtful touch.

For dessert, we were in a rush and asked how long it would take to prepare. The waitress assured us it would be ready in 5 minutes, and true to her word, it arrived in less than 5 minutes—perfectly timed!

To top it off, the prices were very affordable, making the whole experience even better.

Highly recommended! I’ll definitely be...

TLDR: Do eat here, but don’t order steak.

Wine was delicious. Onion soup was nicely seasoned. Herring was to die for. But…

The first steak I was served came out dry and medium-well. I was expecting medium rare. It was almost grey to the core and there was only a small bit of grey-pink in the middle. I’m no chef, but I personally prefer my steaks to not be dried out (unfortunately, I forgot to snap a picture so you’ll just need to trust me :/ ). After I showed the waitress, she had the kitchen make a whole new plate—many thanks.

The new steak, however, was disappointingly rare… and cold to the touch near the middle! Again, I’m no chef, but I got a photo of this one so you can see for yourself: bit scorched on the outside and deep red on the inside.

Everything around the steak was delightful. I ended up not wanting to trouble the restaurant further. I didn’t finish the steak or the wine I had intended to drink with it. I still paid full price for the bill, as I’d like to give the cooking staff the benefit of the doubt. Whether it was an off night on meat or they simply lack the skill, everything else about the night was great. I’d come again, but I’ll order...

We (family of 4 with 2 children under 10) had a fantastic dinner here tonight. Food service started at 7pm and we had escargot, a burger (sans fromage), the charcuterie board, a steak and the special du jours filet mignonette du porc. Everything was delicious. Service was friendly and attentive but we were not rushed- dinner was an experience to be savoured! They were very tolerant of my attempts to speak French and the waiting staff had excellent English to help where I struggled. We stayed for dessert (ice cream and tarte du pomme for the kids, and lava chocolate torte and cheese for us) which was also all delicious. Several beers were on tap, and the bottle of Côtes du Rhône was delicious (went well with the cheese!) The atmosphere in the bistro was welcoming and friendly and there was a mix of locals and tourists. Best place I’ve...