Place des Vosges

Of all the stunning neighborhoods in Paris, this vast public square with its border of red brick and creamy-stone houses perched over a continuous arcade—smack in the heart of the Marais—is my favorite. Parisians consider it the most beautiful square in Paris. Who would disagree?

The Place des Vosges is also Paris's oldest square; an early 17th-century response to community housing needs. Four centuries have passed, yet it remains architecture's best answer to graceful urban planning. Of course the original community installed in 1612 just happened to be that of the court, but it goes to show how brilliant architects can be when properly motivated—in this case, by Henri IV. The symmetrical houses are arranged, one against the other, around grounds originally used for pageants and duels. Strolling and resting tired feet have replaced those more strenuous pastimes, so benches and a play area (with teeter-totters, slide and Jungle Jim), provide for today's needs on the grassy expanse. Upscale boutiques cluster under the arcade and spill into the surrounding streets. Anyone lucky enough to call this area home still feels like royalty.

And where does royalty eat? The range of good things, within the Place and just beyond, runs from the sublime to the ridiculously simple; a gamut loaded with delicious choices. L'Ambrosie is one of only ten three-star restaurants in Paris; it is one of the best tables in the world. The prices are steep, but the food is rarefied. You will eat like the royalty you think you are. If you cannot imagine spending hundreds for dinner, you can hang out with the brotherhood of chauffeurs, just outside, awaiting their bosses. Reserve in advance for the meal of a lifetime.

Just off the square, try one of my favorites, Baracane, an intimate 30-seat bistro specializing in robust southwest cooking. Prices are reasonable, the English-speaking staff is helpful and the food is homey and very good.

For a tasty vegetarian light lunch or snack, walk five minutes and join the lines at the falafel windows of either Chez Marianne or L'As du Falafel. Carry your treat back to the square and enjoy it on a sunny bench; just watch out for drips from the tahini sauce! Finish with a café—after the lunchtime service—at an outside table at either the well-known Ma Bourgogne (favored by locals and tourists alike), or its new competitor, Café Hugo, located at opposite corners on the square.

And when you want to eat at home? Ten minutes from your door, on Thursday and Sunday mornings, is the Richard-Lenoir roving street market, one of Paris's biggest (over 200 merchants) and best. Oysters, myriad cheeses, ready-to-eat hot dishes, patés, fruits, fish, olives and spices, breads and honey will tempt you beyond your needs. Do you really need those scissors or Spanish baking dishes? Moderation inevitably bites the dust at these markets.

For everyday replenishment there is bustling Rue St-Antoine, a 14th-century thoroughfare, rich in history, both real (Beaumarchais, creator of The Marriage of Figaro and The Barber of Seville lived here) and fictionalized (Madame Defarge in Charles Dickens's Tale of Two Cities did her knitting here). Today it is lined with dozens of appetizing possibilities: sushi, Chinese food, pizza, charcuterie (cold cuts), pastry shops, and fine bakeries (try Paul for a variety of tasty breads and freshly-made sandwiches; five minutes away, there's Au Pain du Marais, baker of excellent baguettes). The local Monoprix supermarket is where the French fill their daily shopping carts; the huge alimentation (grocery) department is in the basement.

With appetite satisfied, consider the mind. The Victor Hugo Museum, home of the great writer from 1832-1848, is at 6 Place des Vosges. If you are a fan of Les Mis (preferably the book, but the musical counts, too), why not pay homage (that's all you'll pay, the museum is free) to the man himself? This small museum is a must for every French child; you might even entice your own with a mention of Hugo's Notre-Dame de Paris, which American kids revere as Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame.

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