Le Jules Verne

Review Highlights

Alexander climbs to the second level of the Eiffel Tower — 125 meters above ground — to eat at Le Jules Verne, the 2-Michelin-star restaurant accessible only by a private lift in the south pillar. He brings his wife, because "if you're going to eat lunch at the most iconic romantic spot in the world, you better bring your better half." The restaurant, opened in 1983, lost its Michelin star under Alain Ducasse but was revived by Chef Frédéric Anton — who holds three stars at Le Pré Catelan and the Meilleur Ouvrier de France title — earning back the first star in 2019 and a second in 2024. Alexander arrives with a question shaped by wildly conflicting online reviews: is this a life-changing experience or an overpriced tourist trap? They choose the 5-course lunch menu (€290) and a 2017 Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru.

• ·Amuse-bouche: traditional Spanish gazpacho with cherry tomatoes, smoked butter sabayon, and wild garlic oil — "delicious. I ate both with great pleasure"
• ·Lobster with light vanilla foam, green apple, and olive oil, served alongside a crab soup with cider and caviar — the lobster is "super playful with all of its layers" and the soup delivers "classic intense, deep flavors amplified by the salt and umami of the caviar"
• ·Buckwheat galette with 36-month Comté, girolle mushrooms, and vin jeune sauce, served with a tortellini filled with mushrooms and hazelnut — the galette is "ultra-rich thanks to the aged Comté" and "the clear winner" of the two
• ·Langoustine served two ways — the ravioli has "a weird, almost ammonia-like smell" and Alexander doesn't finish it, but the tail is "delicious and left me wanting more" despite a sauce he found too thick
• ·Lamb confit with pomme boulangère, caramelized onion, and peas in lamb jus — "in terms of presentation, this is not a 2-Michelin-star main dish... everything is slow-cooked, so all the ingredients are super soft" with the meat taking a back seat
• ·Veal sweetbread, offered as a replacement — caramelized, with capers, croutons, and buttery Grenoble sauce, plus a mini version topped with caviar and a generous helping of mashed potatoes. "Nice save. I'm a huge fan of sweetbread, and this was good"
• ·Chocolate soufflé with cacao ice cream — "I love the concept, and this souffle is really good"
• ·Cherry cheese tartlet and cream puff with chocolate verjuice and pine nut — the final bites to close the meal

Alexander says if you pulled a black curtain around the restaurant and blocked the Eiffel Tower view, it might not hit 2-star standard — even though the service was "exceptional" and "fantastic." But when you consider the reality of running a kitchen 125 meters up — the cramped space, storing only one or two bottles of each of 400 labels with daily restocking from cellars kilometers across Paris — you understand the "tremendous compromises" required to achieve this level in such a constrained setting. "Is it a tourist trap? I don't think so." He concludes: "If this is a tourist trap, it's the best one in the world!"

About

Le Jules Verne is a two-Michelin-starred restaurant perched on the second floor of the Eiffel Tower, 125 meters above Paris, accessible by a private lift in the south pillar. Opened in 1983, the restaurant has had a storied history — holding stars under several chefs, losing its star under Alain Ducasse, and being revived by Chef Frédéric Anton (who also holds three stars at Le Pré Catelan and the prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France title), earning back one star in 2019 and a second in 2024. The kitchen faces extraordinary logistical challenges, from severely limited storage to daily restocking from cellars across Paris, all while serving lunch and dinner with sweeping views of the city below.