7 of the trendiest restaurants in Paris are located in museums – Robb Report

At La Halle aux Grains, the first Parisian restaurant of father-son chef duo Michel and Sébastien Bras from famed Suquet in southwestern France, grains, cereals, pulses and seeds are the common denominator of every dish.

It’s an unexpected concept for a gourmet restaurant. But at the Bourse de la Commerce art gallery, which opened last spring to great fanfare in Paris and the international art world, the menu is in perfect harmony with the building’s historical heritage.

Before being restored and turned into an exhibition space for French billionaire François Pinault’s modern art collection, the 18th-century rotunda building served as the city’s grain warehouse. (Francois is the head of the Kering group, which owns luxury brands like Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta and Balenciaga.)

To pay homage to the site’s past, the chefs invested in the untapped potential of grains, legumes, legumes and seeds, planting, roasting, puffing, infusing and fermenting more than 50 varieties to write the restaurant’s new menu.

“What we liked about this project was the singular history of the building and the possibility of continuing the history of this unique place,” said the young Bras. Robb Report.

If the remarkable opening of the gallery shook up the Parisian contemporary art scene, the arrival of the first restaurant of the Bras family in the city also caused a stir.

In recent years, collaborations between Parisian cultural destinations, new and old, and starred chefs and restaurateurs have multiplied. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship: hip dining destinations have the potential to increase traffic to museums, while on-site restaurants provide gastronomic respite for tired, thirsty and hungry visitors.

“Museum restaurants today add a lot of value because they can offer a unique identity,” adds Bras.

Along with the Bourse de la Commerce, the Hôtel de la Marine, which houses royal furnishings and opened last spring, also draws crowds to the much-anticipated on-site restaurants.

And the collaborations don’t stop there. Here’s a look at some of the recently opened museum restaurants in Paris that go beyond simple concession stands selling overpriced sandwiches and are foodie destinations in themselves.