L'Archeste – Yoshiaki Ito's quiet orchestra of French cooking

On a quiet corner of rue de la Tour, where the 16th arrondissement settles into itself between the Trocadéro and the Bois de Boulogne, L'Archeste keeps a low profile for a restaurant of its calibre. Chef-owner Yoshiaki Ito opened the restaurant in September 2016, inside the address that had previously housed the restaurant Quinte, and it holds one MICHELIN Star, a distinction awarded in February 2017 and still carried in the 2026 selection. The name is a quiet pun: a nod to L'Archestrate, the restaurant where Alain Senderens forged his reputation, folded together with the French words for 'artisanal', 'orchestre' and 'art'. Before setting out on his own, Ito spent eighteen years inside the Hiramatsu group, the last ten of them as head chef — a long, largely unpublicised apprenticeship that shows in a kitchen built on discipline rather than spectacle, and on produce rather than performance.

01The room and the setting

Behind an unassuming façade on rue de la Tour, dark brushed-effect painted walls and timber fittings frame a single large window that pulls daylight deep into the dining room. Inside, pale wood and leather sit beneath contemporary art, a restrained set that keeps attention on the table rather than the decor. The street itself sits in a stretch of the 16th that moves at its own pace, well away from the tourist thoroughfares, between the Trocadéro and the Bois de Boulogne.

02The chef

Yoshiaki Ito trained for eighteen years inside the Hiramatsu group, moving between Japan and Paris, the last ten of them as head chef of its Paris dining room. That restaurant was among the first in the city to hold a MICHELIN Star for French cuisine led by a Japanese chef. Before opening his own address, Ito also passed through the kitchens of L'Arpège, Chamarré and Les Elysées du Vernet. L'Archeste, which he opened in September 2016, is his first restaurant as chef-owner.

Insider tip

Dinner Tue–Sat, lunch Thu–Sat; closed Mon & Sun. Book ahead for the no-carte tasting menus.

03The cooking

There is no printed card at dinner: the tasting menus are composed each day according to what has arrived at market and the chef's mood. Seafood often leads — a carpaccio of scallops from Morlaix, oysters from Utah Beach lifting a risotto of shiitake and parmesan, Breton turbot dressed with rocket — while meat gets equal care, a veal cheek under button mushrooms pointed up with brown miso, a pigeon with autumn cèpes. Japanese references surface with restraint rather than fusion — shiso, purple sweet potato, roasted green tea, cherry wood, yuzu — sharpening a dish rather than announcing themselves.

04What to order

In the evening and Saturday lunchtime, the Menu Prestige runs to two starters, a fish course, a meat course and dessert for €250, with a shorter Menu Dégustation in the same shape for €175 (prices read on the restaurant's own site in October 2026). Guests who book ahead — except on Saturdays — can take the three-course Menu Découverte at €120, or its lobster version, built around blue lobster from Finistère, at €180. At Thursday and Friday lunch there is a three-course Menu Déjeuner at €90, alongside fuller tasting formats at €150 and €220. Wine pairings from growers the house works with directly run from three glasses at €75 to five at €110, with a non-alcoholic pairing at €45.

05When to go and booking

L'Archeste serves dinner Tuesday to Saturday and lunch on Thursday, Friday and Saturday; it is closed all day Monday and Sunday, according to its own site in October 2026. Online booking covers parties of up to six; larger groups, up to a full private hire of 24 covers, are asked to call or email. Cancellations or no-shows inside 48 hours of a reservation may be charged against the card used to book.

For a weekend. For a lifetime.