Bistrot Instinct – a bar-room idea turned Haut-Marais bistronomy

Bistrot Instinct sits on rue de Picardie in the Haut-Marais, a stone's throw from the Marché des Enfants Rouges and the glass-roofed Carreau du Temple. It opened in March 2019, founded by three Parisians then in their mid-twenties – chef Maximilian Wollek together with Lou Serafini and Camille Beauné – who wanted, by their own account, an affordable bistro for friends that still took its wine and cocktails seriously. Wollek had already sharpened his knives at Le Meurice, at Pavillon Elysée Lenôtre and under chef Pierre Sang Boyer before deciding to cook on his own terms; he now runs the kitchen as chef-partner, while bartender Simon Martel, previously behind the bar of a Paris palace hotel, builds the drinks list. The restaurant is selected in the MICHELIN Guide, recognised for seasonal, market-driven bistronomic cooking in a small, open-kitchen room that feels closer to dinner at a friend's table than a formal address.

01The room and the setting

The kitchen runs open along one wall, worked under lights that diners on the small upstairs mezzanine can watch from above. The ground floor stays close and informal, built around a cosy, warm and relaxed mood meant for convivial moments among friends rather than a conventional dining room. When the weather allows, a few tables spill onto the pavement of rue de Picardie. The street itself sits a stone's throw from the Marché des Enfants Rouges, Paris's oldest covered food market, and the glass-fronted Carreau du Temple.

02The chef

Maximilian Wollek opened the restaurant in March 2019 with two partners, Lou Serafini and Camille Beauné, describing their idea simply as an affordable bistro for friends that still poured proper wine and cocktails. Before that, Wollek had cooked at Le Meurice, at Pavillon Elysée Lenôtre and under chef Pierre Sang Boyer – training that explains the technique sitting quietly under the apparent simplicity of the plates. The restaurant's own account of its history calls him, half-jokingly, its chef-associé-passionné: the chef-partner-enthusiast who now follows his own instinct in the kitchen rather than someone else's recipe book.

Insider tip

Open Mon–Sat lunch and dinner, Sun dinner only; weekly lunch menu, seasonal tasting menu at €54–64.

03The cooking

Instinct built its identity on home cooking with seasonal produce, favouring colourful, generous plates over austerity. Each season Wollek rewrites a five-dish tasting menu; the current Menu Automne 2026 runs through starter-main, main-dessert or full three-course combinations priced between 54 and 64 euros, with an optional drinks pairing for diners who want to follow the whole thread. On the autumn carte, Œuf Parfait arrives with mushrooms, black garlic and a parsley ravioli, veal sweetbread is dressed with kohlrabi, apple and verbena, and mackerel is plated with beetroot, tahini, seaweed and radish.

04What to order

Among the mains, a fillet of turbot is served with a fig beurre blanc and a tartlet of pumpkin, butternut and quince, and duck breast comes with a fir-tree sauce, celeriac, potato, walnut and verjus. A vegetarian gnocchi dish turns on shiitake, pumpkin, butternut and chestnut, while a beef fillet keeps things classic with a peppercorn sauce, potatoes, carrots, shallots and mustard seed. To finish, there is an apple dessert built on butter, honey, hazelnut, buckwheat and yoghurt ice cream, and a profiterole with vanilla ice cream, salted-butter caramel, feuillantine and chocolate.

05Wine and drinks

The cellar is composed exclusively of French wines, chosen specifically for their environmental respect, stretching from the north of the country to Corsica. Cocktails are the work of Simon Martel, who moved from the bar of a Paris palace hotel to run the programme here. His signature list includes the Perfect Match, built on Calvados, buckwheat, Campari, yellow Chartreuse, gin and dry vermouth; the Smokolada, mixing tequila and mezcal with gentian, pineapple and coconut; and the Tokyo Mule, a combination of vodka, sesame, yuzu, pear and ginger beer.

06When to go and booking

The kitchen opens for lunch and dinner Monday to Saturday, from 12:00 to 14:00 and 18:30 to 21:30; on Sundays the room serves dinner only, from 18:30. A weekly lunch set menu changes every week and runs at a more modest price than the evening cartes. The restaurant has carried a MICHELIN Guide selection and has been a member of the Collège Culinaire de France since 2021, confirmation of a kitchen built on proper sourcing rather than shortcuts. The nearest métro stations are Temple, Filles du Calvaire and République, all within a short walk through the Haut-Marais.

For a weekend. For a lifetime.