Inside Molitor’s Jardin d’Hiver: Paris’s New Botanical Hideaway

Paris has no shortage of grand hotels, but very few dare to reinvent the ritual of dining with such sensual flair. The legendary Hôtel Molitor — the 1930s Art Deco icon reborn as a five-star playground in the 16th arrondissement — has just unveiled Jardin d’Hiver, a lush, light-drenched restaurant that feels more like a secret garden than a dining room. Open since 17 September 2024, it’s a bold move: at once nostalgic and avant-garde, worldly yet rooted in the city’s very soul.

Step inside and the usual rules of the urban jungle dissolve. Instead of white-tablecloth stiffness, you’re welcomed by soft garden furniture, a wrought-iron kiosk and toile de Jouy curtains whose motifs seem to sway like living frescoes.

The room is a greenhouse-like cocoon inspired by the nearby Serres d’Auteuil botanical gardens. Outside, Molitor’s famous outdoor pool glitters like a liquid runway — the perfect backdrop for a lunch that lingers or a twilight cocktail that stretches into night.

The menu, curated by Chef Tony Goncalves, mirrors this philosophy. Forget tired turf-and-surf clichés: here, nature writes the script. A risotto of spelt with apricots and figs hums with quiet decadence; creamy mussels with leeks feel like a coastal breeze; even the beef tartare carries a whisper of tagetes — a dish that tastes of tradition rewritten with a light hand. Desserts by Cheffe pâtissière Camilla D’Ambrosio take the same confident approach: fig, chocolate, warm apple pie — comfort dressed in couture.

At the heart of the room sits the bar, a sculptural counter that serves as Jardin d’Hiver’s social pulse. It’s here that mixologists play alchemist with infusions of wild herbs, exotic citrus and rare spices. These aren’t cocktails that shout; they seduce, each sip a little journey. Arrive early for an apéritif, stay late for people-watching — the crowd is equal parts cosmopolitan, creative and discreetly chic.

What makes Jardin d’Hiver special isn’t just its design or its menu; it’s its mood. In a city obsessed with being seen, Molitor offers something more elusive: a sense of pause. Business lunches unfold with a touch of escapism. Romantic dinners feel spontaneous, not staged. Sunday brunch — yes, they’ve thought of that too — becomes a ritual rather than a routine.

This is modern luxury with meaning: not excess, but experience. Not another “concept” restaurant, but a living tableau of taste, nature and urban sophistication. And in an age where the world’s tastemakers are rethinking what refinement means — less about status, more about sensibility — Molitor’s Jardin d’Hiver feels like a quietly radical statement

Sometimes the most liberating journeys don’t require a plane ticket. They just ask you to cross a threshold and step into a different way of being. In Paris this season, that door leads straight to Molitor.

Molitor – 10 avenue de la Porte Molitor, 75016 Paris
Open Monday to Saturday for lunch and dinner, Sunday for brunch (closed Sunday evening)
Reservations: molitorparis.com