Top Restaurants in Toulouse

My husband and I decided to celebrate our tenth anniversary by taking a romantic vacation to Toulouse. Luckily for us, we were able to find cheap flights to France exactly when we wanted to go!

Once in France, we checked into our hotel and asked our concierge for some restaurant recommendations. While there are a wide range of restaurants in Toulouse, we wanted to eat somewhere extra special and very romantic for our anniversary. He recommended we go to Michel Sarran, and was even able to procure a last-minute reservation for us! This is apparently the most famous restaurant in Toulouse – so it was very expensive – but it was well worth it and we highly recommend it to others. Many celebrities are said to frequent this restaurant, too – so you never know who you might see dining here.

Michel Sarran Restaurant is run by a friendly and gracious husband and wife team – Michel and Francoise – and when they found out it was our anniversary, they went above and beyond to make us feel at home. This is a very intimate, elegant, romantic restaurant in Old Town. The food was amazing, and they had a delicious wine list to choose from, which included several regional wines. Be advised they are closed on the weekend; luckily our anniversary fell on a Thursday! This restaurant should be at the top of your list when visiting Toulouse.

The next restaurant that our concierge recommended to us was La Preference, which is located in the Gabriel Peri area. This charming restaurant is a local favourite and a bit off the beaten path, but it’s definitely worth checking out. It is much more moderately priced than Michel Sarran, but we had a wonderful experience here, too. La Preference specializes in French food, of course, but the chef is unusually creative about the presentation of each dish. We have never seen food that looked so beautiful before! The staff was very knowledgeable about the menu, and made sure we were happy with all their recommendations.

The last restaurant we would recommend to travellers coming to Toulouse is one of the most historic icons of the city: Les Jardins de l’Opera. This restaurant is located in a beautiful 18th-century Italianate courtyard on the main square, so the architecture is stunning – complete with a beautiful glass ceiling. Its light, airy atmosphere and convenient location makes it perfect for people watching, too! They have an extensive wine list, and offer delicious traditional French delicacies plus a variety of internationally-inspired dishes as well. The friendly, professional staff ensured our dining experience was as perfect as the food.

So if you’re contemplating a trip to France, definitely search flights to Toulouse and check out these delightful restaurants for yourself. Our trip to Toulouse was one of our most romantic getaways ever, and the amazing array of restaurants simply made our trip even that much more perfect.