Top Paris restaurants to sell off 20,000 tableware items

Looking to upgrade your tableware? This could be your chance: More than 20,000 pieces from top restaurants in Paris are set to go on sale next month at the prestigious La Vaisselle des Chefs event.

The event, which began 15 years ago, will this year take place on February 7 and 8, at the Césure cultural centre in the 5th arrondissement, for the second edition of the event in the capital (after the first took place in February 2025).

Tableware from some of the city’s top restaurants will be on sale, and will be likely to attract the attention of not only keen chefs and restaurant-goers, but also art collectors. 

Tickets are now on sale, and cost €5 for a Saturday February 7 entry, €4 for Sunday February 8 in the morning, and are free for the Sunday afternoon.

Pieces will come from some of the city’s most iconic establishments, including:

• Café de la Paix (1800s restaurant with opera house views)

• Les Deux Magots (1800s brasserie famous for brunch)

• Lucas Carton (gourmet 1800s Michelin star restaurant run by Chef Hugo Bourny)

• Plaza Athénée (five-star hotel with Eiffel Tower views)

• Mandarin Oriental (five-star hotel on rue Saint-Honoré with inner garden)

• Le Meurice (the ‘original’ five-star palace hotel on rue de Rivoli)

A full list of establishments is on the event’s website.

The event aims to “combine social commitment, responsible consumption and celebration of French craftsmanship”, and is “part of the new circular economy landscape” (read: the growing popularity of second-hand sales).

Pieces set to go on sale include glassware, cutlery, and silverware, as well as bistro tables, and even tables and chairs - and there are twice as many pieces on offer as last year.

A portion of the proceeds from the sale will be donated to restaurant trade charity Apprentis d'Auteuil, which works with disadvantaged young people in the industry.