Are you looking for the best restaurants in Lille? Are you visiting or living in Lille and are at a complete loss of where to eat? Do you have visitors coming and can’t think of a restaurant to showcase the spirit of the north? Or are you just really hungry and just need someone to tell you where to eat?
If any of those sound like you, never fear! This was me on many occasions while I was living in Lille for the past 2 years. Overtime, I discovered some of my all-time favorite restaurants that I brought so many friends and family to when they were visiting me. I must say, this was a fun article to research!
Here you’ll find a list of 10 restaurants to give you some inspiration for your next meal out in and around Lille! (Sorry in advance if you are insanely hungry after reading this article).
*Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase after clicking one of these links, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Tips for visiting Lille
📆 Lille is the perfect weekend getaway. Lille isn’t insanely large and for tourists, you can see everything you want to see in the span of a weekend. When I had guests coming to visit me, usually our itinerary consisted of 1-2 days visiting the city and my local area of Roubaix.
☔️ Be prepared for rain. The north of France is not known for its nice weather. Not saying that it will rain all of them time, but they are known for gloomy overcast weather. If this ends up happening to you and you’re looking for indoor activities, check out my FREE Rainy Day Guide to Lille equipped with many indoor activities for all interests!
🇧🇪 Take some day trips. As I said above, I usually account for 1-2 days for actually visiting Lille but this doesnt mean you can’t spend longer here! Some of the best day trips from Lille are to Belgium and to war memorials such as Vimy Ridge!
READ MORE: Best train-friendly day trips from Lille to Belgium
If you want to try northern food…
To keep in mind: if your objective is to try northern French food, go to an estaminet. An estaminet is a typical northern French restaurant that will offer traditional northern foods. Estaminets will clearly write on the front of their restaurant or on their awnings that they are an estaminet so you’ll be able to notice them when you’re out and about.
1) Estaminet du Chemin Vert
📍Address: 102 Rue du Dronckaert, 59960 Neuville-en-Ferrain
This estaminet is as authentic as it gets! It is located right on the border with Belgium (my phone even sent me a “welcome to Belgium” text) so it’s a little farther out of the city centre but is an amazing restaurant. Walking inside, it feels like you’ve entered a grandmother’s house with family photos and memorabilia all around the walls. From the decor to the food itself, everything about this restaurant is welcoming and cozy.
It offers all of the traditional northern foods but what is interesting is that the menu is also written in “ch’ti”. Ch’ti is the dialect of the north of France and Belgium. Northerns typically have a very strong accent (and often add “ch” or “sh” sounds to “c” sounds, for example, “ça va” will become “ch va”) and you can find language jokes all throughout the menu. As an English speaker, I couldn’t follow the jokes but it is an interesting element of the culture of the north! All in all, a great restaurant to check out if you really want an authentic experience!
2) Les Ptiots
📍Address: 35 Rue de Gand, 59800 Lille
If you want another traditional estaminet that is closer to the centre of Lille, there are tonnes located on the Rue de Gand and this one is one of my personal favourites. We actually tried this restaurant for my birthday because it was recommended to me by a local.
Not only is it a great place to get northern food, but you can sample most of the top traditional foods in one sitting. On their menu, they essentially have a sampler meal where you can try 4 of the most common foods from Lille in miniature sizes. You can try chicken with maroilles sauce, welsh, potjevleesch, carbonade flamande and of course, it comes with a side of fries. What a perfect way to experience northern cuisine!
3) Chez Raoul
📍Address: 56 Rue de Gand, 59800 Lille
When researching top restaurants in Lille to have mussels (another classic northern meal), Chez Raoul kept showing up on the list, so we decided to check it out. It is another estaminet on Rue de Gand (remember, look out for an ‘estaminet’ and if you’re on the Rue de Gand, you’re in the right place!).
The theme of the restaurant was very nautical so I think we went to the right restaurant to have seafood! They also have their own beer which was very tasty and quite inexpensive! The mussels or moules were offered in 3 various sauces: marinières, creme or maroille. I went for the most traditional, marinières and they were really nice! They were also served with insanely tasty fries (the best part is – you could ask for fry refills!). This dish is known as moules frites!
Did you know there is a HUGE festival in Lille dedicated to bargain shopping and moules frites? Its called Braderie, and it is a iconic staple of the culture of the north of France.
READ MORE: 7 things you need to know about the Braderie de Lille
If you want to try a friterie…
4) La Frite A Dorer A Wambrechies
📍Address: 59 Rue Obert, 59118 Wambrechies
The north is known for its French fries and visiting a friterie is something you must do at least once in Lille. And if you want to visit the BEST friterie in the whole of France, go to La Frite A Dorer in Wambrechies. Yes, I’m serious, it has been rated as the best in the country.
To my surprise, it looks like any other friterie, you would never guess that it is incredibly successful. It has an American 1950s theme to its decor and has a few seating options just outside (which is rare for friteries!). But what stands them apart is the quality of their fries. They are amazing! So if you want to try the best of the best, be sure to check this place out!
PRO TIP: a true friterie almost without fail will only accept cash, so keep that in mind when visiting!
If you’re in the mood for crêpes…
5) Crêperie Saint Georges
📍Address: 19 Rue Bartholomé Masurel, 59800 Lille
Of course, when you’re visiting France, it’s nice to have crêpes at least once (or maybe more)! And you’re in luck because Crêperie Saint Georges is all about crêpes (it is also a really beautiful restaurant)! This has to be one of the best restaurants in Lille! I have been here so many times and have taken every visitor here!
I’ve been to other crêperies before and this one I could tell is unique. It is very chic, intimate, and stylish and the prices are very reasonable (around 10-19 euros). They have a huge selection of unique sweet and savoury crêpes all around the theme of different famous Georges! And I can tell you from experience that their sweet crêpes are just as good as their savoury ones, so be sure to save some room for dessert!
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: A Sweet Tooth’s Guide to Lille
If you’re craving a burger…
6) Be Burger
📍Address: 39 Rue de Gand, 59800 Lille
This is another one of our go-to restaurants when we have friends and family come to visit us in Lille. The atmosphere is warm and friendly and the burgers are incredible (they even have a maroilles burger —really keeping the spirit of the north alive)!
My suggestion is, if you can’t decide what to eat because all of the burgers are just so inviting, why not split one with a friend so you can try two different recipes? It’s a great way to get the most out of your meal. Also, their sweet potato fries are *chefs kiss*!
If you’re a meat-lover …
7) Le Barbier qui fume
📍Address (Vieux-Lille): 69 rue de la Monnaie 59800 Lille
Their specialty is meat. Smoked meat to be exact! So if you’re coming here, have your inner carnivore ready for a large selection of various types of meats all slow-cooked on beech wood. You can choose between fish, duck, ribs, beef, pork … you name it, they’ve smoked it! I personally thought that their selection of sides was also delicious (I went for the gratin dauphinois – amazing)! There are a couple of Le Barbier qui fume in Lille, one by the Lille Europe train station and the other in the old town (Vieux-Lille)!
✨UPDATED LIST OF RESTAURANTS: Local Foodie Guide to Lille
8) La Taverne du Petit Wasquehal
📍Address: 2 Rue Faidherbe, 59290 Wasquehal
This restaurant is a little outside of Lille in Wasquehal but if you can make the journey out there it is worth the trip. The restaurant, at first, looks like a small pub but it expands into a lodge-style restaurant or tavern in the back. I particularly enjoyed the atmosphere! The specialty at this restaurant is known as ‘la jambette’, a pork leg whose meat just falls right off the bone. It is so incredibly tasty and congrats if you can finish the entire thing! If you’re not in the mood for pork, they also offer a selection of northern specialties as well.
If you really don’t know what you want to eat…
9) Grand Scène
📍Address: 31 Rue de Béthune, 59800 Lille
I have come to realize that in France, ‘food courts’ aren’t very common. But in the centre of Lille, they have something similar! The Grand Scène is filled with many 10 small street-food booths, similar to a food court, all offering a different type of cuisine. You have a selection of Greek food, Mexican food, Pizza, Burgers and so much more!
But what’s great about Grand Scène is that the food isn’t crummy fast food like most food courts. Your selection is from different actual restaurants so the quality is amazing, and the price is very reasonable. So if you’re with a group that can’t really agree on what to eat, this is the place for you!
10) La Friche Gourmande
📍Address: 90 Rue nationale, 59700 Marcq-en-Barœul
This is another food court-style place to eat however, it felt more like a food truck-style as this former industrial area now has several booths serving a choice between Thai food, burgers, tacos or Indian food! It is also equipped with a bar, an apero station and a dessert booth!
The best part was the vibe (and the pint-size cocktails). It reminded me a lot of Boxpark in London (if you know what that is) with various shipping containers spread around! It is partially covered and is filled with picnic tables, private igloos and plenty of other places to sit with twinkle lights scattered around and a fashionable disco ball hanging in the centre.
Want recommendations personalized for your trip? I offer custom travel guides and planning services with a focus on France to help visitors get the most out of their trip! You can learn more about that here!
Know what you want to eat yet?
All of these restaurants in Lille have put a smile on my face without fail! I hope you find them just as tasty as I do! My most recent updated list of the best restaurants in Lille is on my FREE Local Foodie Guide to Lille! Throughout my 2 years in Lille I have been adding to this list, so be sure to give it a save for any new updates!
I have also put together a guide specifically for those Sweet Tooths out there. I have found some of the best dessert and sweet shops in Lille and put them in a walking tour of Lille’s Old Town. Trust me, it’ll be hard to choose what you’ll want to try! Find out more here: Sweet Tooths Guide to Lille!
