With 137 years of business, LIPP is a four-lettered institution in the heart of Saint Germain. Even without knowing its famous clientele, you can feel the history with all four senses when you walk through the doors.
A classic brasserie aesthetic with antique mosaics, wall to wall mirrors, and leather benches. Tables snake the walls, each with pressed white linen tablecloths, pristine cutlery and fine glassware. Not a water stain in sight. In terms of looks, it's not much changed since the bohemian days of the Rive Gauche.
Likewise, the service - with flair but finesse - creates a huge part of the atmosphere. These mature waiters (average job length is 19 years) are LIPP’s gatekeepers - who know the menu back to front and the intricacies of every dish by heart. You'll trust them from the off.
Dishes range from classic pied de porc (pigs trotters), to the meaty entrecôte, andouillette AAAAA, or confit de cuisse de canard (duck thigh confit), everything you'll find is hearty and made from top quality produce. Sauced, creamy, indulgent - it's everything you crave from French food. Mashed potato purée, spinach, beans, gratin: are trimmings which complete the picture.
Tradition reigns here, to the point that they don't serve any type of soda. So don't even think of asking for a Diet Coke.
Still wondering which famous bottoms have graced LIPP’s seats over the years? Here goes... Kate Moss, François Mitterrand, Sharon Stone, Emmanuel Macron, Catherine Deneuve, Marcel Proust, Yves Montand, Francis Ford Coppola, Yves Saint-Laurent, Madonna, Mazarine Pingeot, Jean-Paul Sartre, Sofia Coppola, Vincent Cassel, Oliver Stone...are a few of them.
LIPP's prestige might be why you're going, but underneath that - you and Madonna have something in common. A need for authentic, no-nonsense French food and a throwback to the Paris of days gone by.