Wes Anderson meets granny chic at a boutique Paris hotel: Le Grand Mazarin

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This article is part of FT Globetrotter’s guide to Paris

On a busy crossroads in Le Marais, not far from the Hôtel de Ville and the Pompidou, Le Grand Mazarin is from the outside the sort of classic Parisian hotel that you might imagine to have small, uncomfortable beds, poky rooms and an unremarkable restaurant. How wrong you would be. 

This boutique hotel is owned by Patrick Pariente, whose iconic 1990s brand Naf Naf was once emblazoned on the sweater of every teenager in Paris, and it has been newly revamped by designer du jour Martin Brudnizki, whose imprint can be found from Four Seasons Astir Palace in Athens to the Broadwick in London’s Soho. With Maisons Pariente’s first hotel in the capital (adding to a portfolio of two properties in the south of France and one in Méribel), Brudnizki has taken what probably once was a standard little hotel and transformed it into a cosy five-star sanctuary. And it is a maximalist hipster triumph. 

With a plush Ladurée-macaron palette of pistachio, caramel, chocolate and lilac, and plenty of velvet upholstery and carved woodwork, the feel is part Wes Anderson, part Jewish granny — the latter a nod to the Marais district on the hotel’s doorstep. Nowhere is this winning combination more evident than in the petite lobby, with its washed silk walls, swathed curtains and gold-framed oil landscape paintings. Here, guests can wait to check in or out, sinking into plush upholstered chairs while bellboys in Grand Budapest Hotel-esque violet uniforms wheel luggage around on a gold cart.

Restaurant and bar

The star attraction at Le Grand Mazarin is Boubalé, the ground-floor Ashkenazi-themed restaurant presided over by famed Israeli chef Assaf Granit. Its name a Yiddish term of endearment, Bouablé is the beating heart of the hotel which, with its frilly lampshades and folksy fabric wallcoverings, feels homely, welcoming and very un-Parisian. On our Friday-night visit, the restaurant was booked out with groups of friends and families coming together for a feast. And feast it is. 

The menu celebrates eastern European classics, including Granit’s fragrant take on chopped liver, gravlax, pierogi and schnitzel, accompanied with delicate herby salads, tomatoes with pomegranate molasses and other flavoursome accoutrements. In keeping with the Jewish granny theme, portions are served on chintzy crockery and are fittingly generous. Make sure to leave room for a wonderfully unctuous chocolate mousse with olive oil and sea salt. Then head through a heavy curtain to Le Bar de Boubalé for a post-dinner cocktail. 

Rooms

Our junior suite, up in the eaves via a private flight of stairs, felt particularly snug with a tapestried canopy over the king-size bed and plenty of low lamps. The pink marble-clad bathroom had a walk-in shower and a standalone bathtub (a real rarity in Paris), not to mention double sinks — one of life’s great luxuries, if even for a night. A little balcony, meanwhile, was the perfect eyrie to sit with a digestif and spy on the lively Rue de la Verrerie below. (Mercifully, once the patio doors were tightly closed, we couldn’t hear a thing.) 

Pool and gym

Underground pools with hand-painted murals and exciting mosaics are all the rage in Paris these days. Here the pool is small and stripy — lined with alternating blue and white tiles. Lie back (in the, overly warm, I thought, water) and admire a playfully Cocteau-like mural by Jacques Merle. Even the 24-hour gym is stylish, featuring a range of tasteful wood-clad fitness equipment — the sort one might imagine Wes Anderson to have chez lui. 

The area

The location is ideal for le shopping (the Rue de Rivoli and the department store BHV are a minute away) and for wandering the arty falafel-scented streets of the Marais. Everywhere in central Paris is virtually walking distance, but you can reach the Centre Pompidou in five minutes and the Musée National Picasso Paris in 10. 

At a glance

• Rooms and suites: 50 rooms and 11 suites; three of the suites can be joined together for a large family gathering

• Good for: Boubalé, the hotel’s top-notch Ashkenazi restaurant; proxmity to the Marais’s shops and cafes

• Not so good for: Those on a budget — this is a treat stay

• FYI: Don’t miss breakfast, whatever you do. A central table (often featured on the hotel’s Instagram account) groans each morning with a tiered display of viennoiseries, homemade apple tarts, madeleines, fruit salads and juices, while the chef’s counter is full of cheese, cold meats and breads — and eggs can be ordered at the table

• Rates: Doubles from €690, breakfast included (early January)

• Address: 17 Rue de la Verrerie, 75004 Paris

• Website; Directions

Rebecca Rose stayed as a guest of Le Grand Mazarin

Do you have a favourite Paris hotel? Tell us about it in the comments below. And follow FT Globetrotter on Instagram at @FTGlobetrotter

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