This is French food at its core with classics on the menu like “oeuf-mayo, escargots & museau de boeuf.” But beware adventurous hearts: you don’t come here for the love of gastronomy, but literally to enter a time machine by stepping through the restaurant’s revolving doors. In a matter of seconds, you find yourself in surroundings that haven’t changed much since 1896, when Chartier started catering “a decent meal at a decent price” to the people of Paris.

Since over a century, princes and paupers, bourgeois and workers alike have been queuing for tables at Restaurant Chartier. These days the social mix isn’t quite as enticing as it used to be—very often there are just as many tourists as Parisians enjoying the restaurants timeless dishes. Nevertheless, the place is a Parisian stalwart, and one that also needs some planning ahead—the iffy reservations system means a 30-minute-minimum wait in the line that starts forming outside of Chartier from dusk on.