Schmap Bordeaux Dining & Drinking

Our apologies: your internet browser is not yet fully supported by our Schmap online guides. If you continue, pages in this guide may display or function incorrectly.

Would you like to continue anyway?

Schmap.com supports the following browsers:

Internet Explorer 6 and above
Firefox 1.5 and above
Safari 3 for Pc

MAC

Safari version 1.3 and above
Firefox 2 and above

Bordeaux - Dining & Drinking
Download the Schmap Bordeaux Guide
With Schmap 2.0 you can:

Browse this Schmap Guide on your PC, online or offline.
View Schmap Guides for 200 worldwide destinations.
Bookmark places of interest, plan trips and take virtual tours.
Custom print your own full-color travel guides.
Publish and share schmapplets with your favorite places
Enjoy many more unique Schmap features.

Bordeaux Home
Schmap Bordeaux guide and map

Bordeaux is a city in the south west of France and, as such, a place where people spend a lot of time outside the whole year round. The historic City Centre of Bordeaux is packed with cafés, bars and restaurants where you can discover numerous different atmospheres and savour food from all over the world—not forgetting, of course, the marvellous French cuisine. Bordeaux never rests, for the town is constantly full of all kinds of people: students who meet at the Plana or at the Bodegon on La Victoire square, and then go for a snack in the small restaurants situated on the banks of the Garonne River (Le Port de La Lune and Viandocks). You may also meet football supporters who have taken up residence in the Nulle Part Ailleurs or the Café Populaire, two very fashionable cafés. Eventually, everyone meets up in the liveliest places that one can find in town: Bodega Bodega for tapas, the Adidas Café, or Down Under, an Antipodean bar.

International Influences

Bordeaux is close to Spain and you can feel it: young and old people go out at night, and they love meeting friends. Make your way towards the Saint-Rémi district and you will spot the happy gourmandes. Indulge yourself with a seafood restaurant: A. Thibeaud, Le Bistro de l'Embarcadère, la Cabane à Saumon or with some traditional cuisine: la Cheminée Royale or Lou Magret. In this area of Bordeaux, the selection of food on offer is impressive. You will find numerous Chinese, Indian and Tex-Mex restaurants and a large variety of crêperies. In Bordeaux, we love cultural diversity and mixes, and consequently you will, at will, be able to taste and discover new taste sensations. Le Taj Mahal is grand, La Crêpe d'Or will help you discover Brittany and l'Etoile d'Or will offer you a real and delicious taste of China.

Let Your Desires Guide Your Palette

As you can see, eating out in Bordeaux has only one drawback: the diversity is such that you will be faced with a Cornelian dilemma: how will you be able to choose between so many delights? Let yourself be guided by your desires and our advice, and it will be your turn to enjoy the warm welcomes offered by the restaurant owners.

Go For a Nightcap

If after dinner you have decided to go to the cinema or the theatre, don't go to bed before having had a last drink or a good hot chocolate in one of the numerous cafés that can be found in Bordeaux. You will be welcomed until late at night for, in Bordeaux, you will never find anyone who goes to bed early. At Chez Ducon or at Café Gourmand there will always be a table where you can enjoy a hot drink. If you are a coffee or tea fanatic go to Café Reno (be careful, it closes at 7 pm), and if you like to see and be seen take a seat on the terrace of Café Régent.

As far as bars are concerned, there are plenty of them. Think about the ones named above and favour the districts of La Victoire, Gambetta and the banks of the Garonne River if you want a lively atmosphere. Most restaurants, bars and cafés are open midday and evening and even, many of them, on Sundays. At lunchtime, you will have no problem getting food because everything is organised for tourists, travellers and people passing through Bordeaux. Head for the Allées de Tourny and Le Grand Théâtre if you want to sample fine Bordelaise (Bordeaux) cuisine. L'Entrecôte is a good place to try.

Life Out of Doors

As you have probably gathered, people who live in Bordeaux spend a lot of time outside. It is hard not to meet other people, make friends and even fall in love in Bordeaux's cafés, bars and restaurants. People here like being together and partying, they are happy to live in a town where everything is laid out for them to find happiness.

Copyright 1999-2005 Wcities, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Contact Wcities

A. Thibeaud

The sea in and under your plates

53, rue St-Rémi
(Cours de l'Intendance)
Bordeaux 33000
France
+33 5 5644 5243

Real aquariums are used as tables here, believe it or not. This place is well loved by the Bordeaux people and as the décor is entirely focused on the sea, it is quite natural to order the specialties of the house: grilled lobster (about EUR 23, depending on market prices), or a very large seafood platter from the Bay of Arcachon. On the à la carte menu, there are also fish dishes such as the turbot cooked according to the chef's taste, along with vegetables from the local market.

Review © 2007, Wcities

City Centre

Bordeaux
France
The centre of Bordeaux comprises several quarters offering a wide variety of attractions. Of the neighborhoods found here, St. Pierre, perhaps most notably, lies in the heart of Bordeaux, and is the historic centre of the town. It is made up of beautiful little streets, some of which are still paved. Saint Pierre is Bordeaux's culinary capital, with a large variety of restaurants to suit every taste and pocket—something for gourmets and gourmands alike. The Place du Parlement is home to some wonderful architecture and a decorative fountain. Also in the area is the Eglise Saint Pierre, built in the XVth and XVIth centuries on the site of the former Gallo-Roman port.

Review © 2007, Wcities

Photo: mistca (Eugene Zhuko

Crêpe d'Or

Choice and flavours 18, place du Parlement
Bordeaux, Aquitaine 33000
France
+33 556 48 2903 This is undoubtedly the best crèperie in town. In summer, diners watch the comings and goings of passers-by on the pretty Place du Parlement from the charming terrace. Buckwheat crèpes with onions, scallops or ratatouille (stewed Mediterranean vegetables) are house specialties, as are dessert crèpes served with chocolate, bananas, coconut, chestnut purée and various flavours of ice cream. The attentive service often includes a visit from the boss himself.

Review © 2007, Wcities

The Grand Theatre

The Bordeaux Opera 2, place de la Comédie
(Cours de l'Intendance)
Bordeaux, Aquitaine 33025
France
+33 556 00 8595 Built by Victor Louis between 1773 and 1780, this is considered as one of the most beautiful 18th century buildings in Europe. Well-known companies, such as the National Orchestra of Bordeaux Aquitaine, perform here, but the program delights opera and ballet lovers as well. This superb theatre was renovated in 1990 and 1991 in shades of blue, enhanced with gilt. The Grand Café welcomes spectators and visitors wishing to have a coffee or lunch. One hour tours are available and cost EUR4.50.

Review © 2007, Wcities

Photo: Alexandru Dumitrescu
Photo: eastboca.net
Photo: Craig Baker
Photo: Alexx Sky Production
Photo: J. Van der Meeren
Photo: Gabriel Ansel
Photo: Tom Li
Photo: Bérenger ZYLA

Photo: Edwin Leung
Photo: Yvonne Sandner
Photo: Emir de Nelek
Photo: Jason Brooks
Photo: A. Di Francesco
Photo: Gijs de Kruijf
Photo: Thomas CUELHO
Photo: Lesley

Photo: Sylvain Cail
Photo: Takayuki YAMAMOTO
Photo: Olivier BOURGOIN
Photo: Michelle Dickinson
Photo: Samuel Genevois
Photo: Chris BRELLOCHS ©
Photo: Nick Bradley
Photo: Philippe Mondon