What to Do in Montmartre, Paris
Practise your pastry making in an exclusive patisserie class, enjoy a picnic in a much-loved local park and visit the former home (and studio) of a Montmartre great. Here are our tips for exploring the 18th arrondissement
11 October, 2022
- Words by
- Hannah Meltzer
Most
Most
guidebooks will list quaint eateries, Place du Tertre’s
painters and the city’s only vineyard as must-visits in the 18th
arrondissement, but if you’re seeking a taste of the neighbourhood
behind the basilica, we’d recommend sidestepping Sacré-Coeur and
heading to the less-trodden Montmartre green spaces like proper
Parisians do.
thingstodo
Learn to make pastry with Monsieur Caramel
Learn how to cook exquisite French pastry with a true
Montmartrois bohemian. This pastry kitchen/thrift shop is so well
hidden that most locals don’t know it’s there. Yohan Kim, aka
Monsieur Caramel, is from Seoul in South Korea, but came to Paris
to study art before retraining in fine pastry (our kind of career
change). After working in some of the city’s most prestigious
kitchens, he opened his own shop, offering made-to-measure pastry
ateliers. He speaks excellent English. Call or email ahead to
arrange a class (minimum two people; maximum four).
thingstodo
Have a picnic in a park tourists don’t go to
The steps in front of the Sacré-Coeur, with their amazing view
over the city, are usually pretty busy, especially in the middle of
the day. As an alternative, take a boulangerie picnic to the
lesser-trodden Square Marcel Bleustein Blanchet, just behind the
basilica. It’s a proper Parisian hangout, and you’ll often find
locals doing tai chi on the lawns, or reading on the benches. For a
hot lunch, grab some gourmet galettes from nearby Grenouilles (55
Rue du Chevalier de la Barre).
Address
1 Rue de la Bonne, 75018
thingstodo
Visit the Musée de Montmartre and its gardens
This quaint museum was once the studio of Renoir and the home
and studio of post-impressionist painter Suzanne Valadon, a
Montmartre legend whose workspace and apartment have been lovingly
recreated inside. There’s an excellent programme of temporary
exhibitions, usually with a Parisian theme. Make sure you head out
to the gardens, which back onto the famous Montmartre vineyard, for
a moment of bucolic seclusion.