Le Brunch, a New Firm Favourite in France

It seems that not a week goes by that I don’t receive a new offer for the best brunch in Paris, Nice or Lyon. No longer seen as a quirky anglo-saxon mongrel, brunch has now become a fashionable way to spend le weekend and has now even engendered the new unofficial verb bruncher.On a lazy weekend there’s no meal as relaxed as this mix of late breakfast / early lunch. It not only extends the menu, giving us permission to mix breakfast pastries with heartier main dishes, but also invites the wine list to the table. Not a bad way to start a day, sipping a Mimosa.

From budget to family to luxury there’s a choice for every bruncheur. The trend has become so prevalent that there is a dedicated website to find where to go for brunch: www.oubruncher.com.

There’s fashionista brunches, charity brunches, organic brunches, artery-clogging brunches, quiet brunches and boisterous brunches. What they all have in common is the sense of a pause, taking more time to enjoy getting together, conversation, a celebration of people, places and good food. The brunch is now firmly established as a mainstream French tradition.

A special spot for brunch, if I could pick one out of hundreds, is the café at the Jacquemart-André museum, touted as the most beautiful tearoom in Paris … but you need to be there at the start of service or your risk being overrun by the crowd. Their brunch has been aptly described by a guest as a “feast of magnificence”. The setting will certainly not disappoint.