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Superstar Japanese designer sells his limited edition clothing in a chic shop that blends in well with the buildings on the square.

Also called the “World of Spices” (and it does have every spice you could wish for) this is a treasure trove of the world’s best food and drink. Tiny but packed with meat, cheese, wine, rum, dates, honey, mustard… it has to be seen.

Belgian singer/songwriter Brel (1929–78) moved to Paris in 1953, where audiences loved his melancholy songs.

A gregarious wine bar off the beaten track and full of character, with a rustic beamed ceiling hung with country hams and a vine growing around the walls. The moustached owner from Auvergne is an enthusiastic wine lover and aims to please with his reasonably priced cellar. Closed in August.

Specialists in fun chocolates, in the shape of the Eiffel Tower and other Parisian landmarks.

If you don’t mind what you eat, go for the no-choice menu as it can halve the price of your meal. If you choose à la carte instead, try fricassé of lobster with dried cherry sauce.

The 17th-century royal medicinal herb garden was planted by Jean Hérouard and Guy de la Brosse, physicians to Louis XIII. Opened to the public in 1640, it flourished under the curatorship of Comte de Buffon in the mid-18th century. It contains some 10,000 species, including the first Cedar of Lebanon planted in a French tropical greenhouse, and Alpine, rose and winter gardens (see Cedar of Lebanon).

In this historic botanical garden you can escape the bustle of the city and lose yourself on the shady tree-lined avenues, amid colourful flowerbeds, or the hothouses and exotic gardens. Or simply relax on the lawns.

Established as a medicinal herb garden for the king in 1626, these vast botanical gardens are a wonderfully tranquil spot. Paths are lined with statuary and mature trees, including the oldest in Paris, an Acacia robinia dating from 1636. There is also an alpine garden.

This 19th-century garden has a series of greenhouses where ornamental hothouse plants are grown. In the centre is a palm house with tropical plants.