Ooh La Local

Cultural tips from discerning Parisian creatives.

By Lucy Alexander 05/08/2024

The French capital’s cultural life was already on the upswing. Mix in a major global event, and it’s now ready to go toe to toe with any city in the world.

To get the inside scoop on this great city Vivian Song and Lucy Alexander asked four Parisian bonafides to share their treasured haunts with Robb Report readers.

From chefs and creative directors to designers and artists who call the French capital home.

Left to right: Hélène Darroze, Charaf Tajer, Mathieu Lehanneur and Eva Jospin

Mathieu Lehanneur
The award-winning interdisciplinary designer penned this year’s Olympic torch—a modernist take on the Eiffel Tower and its reflection off the Seine—and cauldron.

PARISIAN BONA FIDE 
He was raised in Paris’s suburbs but has lived in the city since 1994, when he enrolled at France’s state university of industrial design, ENSCI–Les Ateliers.

THE PLACE NONE OF YOUR FRIENDS HAVE HEARD ABOUT
“Musée de Minéralogie is in one of the most high-level engineering schools in Paris, called École des Mines. It’s a small museum, very old, nobody ever goes there—because, actually, it’s in the school—but it’s open to the public. Even if you are not fascinated by stones, it’s incredible. It’s an amazing range of colours. It’s not art, it’s not science, it’s not design—it’s just weird things. And it’s super-secret, because it’s not so glamorous on paper.”

THE AUTHENTIC LUNCH SPOT
“I would go to Chez Georges, a very small restaurant [on rue du Mail in the 2nd arrondissement]. Amazing, super-traditional French food but with super-good ambience, not ‘designer’ at all. As a designer, I’d never go to a ‘design’ place, you know? I hate that in a way.”

THE LOCALS-ONLY GARDEN
“When people come to Paris, they go to Tuileries Garden, or they go to Jardin du Luxembourg, a super-bourgeois garden with beautiful ladies and young kids well-dressed. But Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, in a bit less chic neighbourhood, is a more interesting, bigger, natural garden. It’s not well organised—it’s more like a part of a forest. In most cases, people who come to Paris stay in the centre of Paris because it’s more convenient. But this one is in the 19th arrondissement, in the north of Paris, so it’s quite easy to reach. It merits an afternoon.”

Eva Jospin

The internationally exhibited artist crafts forest scenes from cardboard, wood, brass and other materials. Her gigantic, embroidered installation Chambre de soie will be on display during the Games at Versailles Orangerie.

PARISIAN BONA FIDE
Jospin, born and raised in the City of Light, is a self-described “terrible Parisian woman”. The daughter of former French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin, she and her Italian partner live with her three children in the city. 

FOR A BIRD’S-EYE VIEW OF THE CITY’S HISTORY
“Musée des Plans-Reliefs is inside Les Invalides, which is all about war and the military. But it’s an incredible place, started by Louis XIV. It has huge models of when the city had fortifications. Some of those models are, like, 100 square feet [around 9 m²], with all the details, and so it’s like a mini world.” 

FOR A DOSE OF BLUE-CHIP INSPIRATION
“Musée Fragonard d’Alfort is one of the most impressive museums, even though it’s not exactly inside Paris. It’s at the national school for veterinarians. [It inspired] this very famous English artist who cut cows in two, Damien Hirst. It’s very strange and spooky, but very interesting.” 

THE ARRONDISSEMENT TO GET LOST IN
“One of my favourite neighbourhoods in Paris is the 5th, because it’s not changing. It’s totally forgotten by the rest of the city. It’s a little bit too expensive, so it’s not a place where people speculate on real estate. And so it’s just exactly like it was, not moving at all. You don’t have a lot of shops, you don’t have a lot of boutiques for soap and socks, you know, so I like that.” 

Charaf Tajer


Founder and creative director of Casablanca, a sportswear line known for its colourful silk shirts, and for teaming up with the likes of Audemars Piguet and Globe-Trotter.

PARISIAN BONA FIDES
Though his parents met in Morocco and his studio is in London, Tajer was born and raised in Paris’s 10th arrondissement. “I think by going to other places, I understood why [this city] is so special.” 

FOR SOUVENIRS THAT WON’T COLLECT DUST
“It’s cool to go and buy shirts and ties and slippers at Charvet. It’s right around the corner from the Ritz. It’s quite a fantastic, gentleman’s place.” 

THE BEST COUSCOUS IN TOWN
“There is a restaurant on rue de Bretagne called Chez Omar. They’ve been doing the couscous for 40 years. Everybody in the ’90s used to go there—the biggest designers, [Christian] Lacroix, Naomi Campbell. It’s a very cool place. And you can still see Omar there.” 

FOR A TASTE OF JAPAN (WHEN YOU’RE DONE WITH ALL THE BUTTER)
“I’m a big Japan fan, and there are two Japanese restaurants that I go to. One is called Sanukiya [on rue d’Argenteuil]. The other is Kunitoraya; they have a few locations. One [Charbon Kunitoraya, on rue Villédo] is more like a 10-course tasting menu, and the other [Udon Bistro, on rue de Richelieu] is more like udon and all of that.” 

@charaftajer

Hélène Darroze
The celebrated fourth-generation chef has a total of six Michelin stars and six restaurants to her name.

PARISIAN BONA FIDE
Two of Darroze’s restaurants, Jòia and Marsan par Hélène Darroze, are in Paris. She lives in the fashionable 6th arrondissement with her two teenage daughters. 

WHEN SHE WANTS TO LET ANOTHER ACCOMPLISHED CHEF DO THE WORK
“I love to go to Les Enfants du Marché. It’s in a market where you have producers and some restaurants, and this one, particularly, is very good. You eat outside, sometimes with your coat. Café des Ministères is very traditional food, and this is a chef [Jean Sévègnes] who used to work a lot with me. It’s about dishes like vol-au-vents, stuffed cabbage, oeufs mimosa [deviled eggs]—the classic dishes of the French cuisine but so, so good that you cannot find a table anymore. In summer it’s very nice. That’s when they also do tomates farcies [stuffed tomatoes]. It reminds me of my grandmother’s. It’s just incredible.” 

WHEN SHE’S CRAVING ASIAN FARE
“I love Japanese food. One restaurant is Yen in the 6th arrondissement. My daughters were born in Vietnam, so we love Vietnamese food. Ha Noi 1988, this one is really good.” 

BE SURE TO SAVE ROOM FOR
“I also advise going to one bakery for sure. There is one at the moment, Mamiche, which is just incredible. There’s a long queue in front, but you have to do it, because they are doing such beautiful bread and pastries. For example, a stuffed chouquette—it’s very Parisian. It’s like a little choux, stuffed with vanilla Chantilly, and it’s just crazy, but all their patisseries are very crazy.” 

@helenedarroze

ADVERTISE WITH US

Subscribe to the Newsletter

Stay Connected

You may also like.

Omega Just Unveiled 9 Watches in Its New Constellation Observatory Collection

The line-up shows up a bevy of metals and colours, too, as well as two new calibres.

By Nicole Hoey 31/03/2026

Omega’s latest watch is in a universe of its own.

The Swiss watchmaker just unveiled its new Constellation Observatory Collection today, the next step in its Constellation lineage and the first two-hand hour and minute timepieces to ever earn Master Chronometer certification. And if you were paying attention to any of the dazzling watches spotted at the Oscars this year, you would’ve caught a glimpse of the new line already: Sinners star Delroy Lindo rocked one of the models on the Academy Awards red carpet, giving us a pre-release preview of the collection.

Developed at Omega’s new Laboratoire de Précision (its chronometer testing lab open to all brands), the collection houses a set of nine 39.4 mm watches. The watches underwent 25 days of scrutiny there, analysed via a new acoustic testing method that recorded every sound emitted from the timepiece to track irregularities, temperature sensitivities, and more in the name of all things precision. (Details such as water resistance and power reserve are also thoroughly examined.) This meticulous process is all in the name of snagging that Master Chronometer label, meaning that the timepiece is highly accurate and surpasses the threshold for ultra-high performance. The Constellation Observatory Collection has now changed the game, though, thanks to its lack of a seconds hand.

A watch from the Constellation Observatory Collection, with the Observatory dome on display. Omega

“Until now, precision certification has required a seconds hand,” Raynald Aeschlimann, president and CEO of OMEGA, said in a press statement. “The development of a new acoustic testing methodology has made that requirement obsolete. It is this breakthrough that has enabled us to present the Constellation Observatory, the first two-hand watch to achieve Master Chronometer certification.”

In addition to notching its place in history, the collection also debuted a new pair of movements: the Calibre 8915 and the Calibre 8914, each perched on a skeletonised rotor base. The former’s Grand Luxe iteration will appear on the 950 Platinum-Gold model in the collection, which offers up that base in 18-karat Sedna Gold alongside a Constellation medallion in 18-karat white gold with an Observatory dome done in white opal enamel surrounded by stars. The second Calibre 8915, the Luxe, will find its home on the other precious-metal models in the line, either made with the brand’s 18-karat Sedna, Moonshine, or Canopus gold seen across the case, the hand-guilloché dial, and, of course, the movement itself. (Lindo chose to rock the Moonshine Gold on Moonshine Gold iteration, priced at approximately $86,000, for Sinners‘s big night at the Oscars.) As for the Calibre 8914, it can be found in the collection’s four steel models.

 

Omega Constellation Observatory Collection
A look at a gold case-back from the collection. Omega

Each model is a callback to myriad design features on past Omega models. That two-hand dial, for one, comes from the 1948 Centenary (the brand’s first chronometer-certified automatic wristwatch), while the pie-pan dial (seen in various blue, green, and golden hues throughout the line) and that Constellation medallion caseback both appear on watches from 1952. The star adorning the space above 6 o’clock also harks back to 1950s timepieces from Omega. And to finish off the look, you can opt for alligator straps in a variety of colours, or perhaps a gold iteration to match the precious-metal models; the brick-like pattern on the 18-karat Moonshine bracelet was also inspired by Omega watches from the ’50s.

We’ll have to keep our eyes peeled for any other Constellation Observatory timepieces (or any other unreleased models from the brand) at the rest of the star-studded events headed our way this year—perhaps the Met Gala?

Stay Connected

Best Combustion Supercar: Ferrari 12Cilindri Spider

A modern classic in the making, combining naturally aspirated power with elegant restraint to deliver performance that feels as refined as it is visceral.

By Vince Jackson 20/04/2026

In a year when carmakers of all persuasions sheepishly extended hyperbolic electric targets, it’s fitting that the monastic puritans of Maranello—who, lest we forget, won’t finally yield to the sin of battery power until October with the Elettrica—opted to make combustion their major power play.

As an uncertain future of AI omnipresence barrels towards us, the 12Cilindri—an analogue, open-topped tribute to Ferrari’s late-’60s/early-’70s grand tourer, the Daytona—represents a defiant fade into the past, a pause for breath, a fleeting return to The Good Times when nascent technology provoked excitement rather than existential dread.

Guiding this automotive nostalgia trip is, as the nomenclature suggests, a naturally aspirated 6.5-litre V12 engine, generating an unceasing wave of power as it sears towards the 9,500 rpm redline with relative nonchalance. That’s because the 12Cilindri is not a mouth-foaming attack-dog. It scales performance heights with the refinement of the finest Italian works of art; its “Bumpy Road” mode facilitates comfy al fresco GT cruising, and even the imperious powerplant is mannerly at most speeds.

For all the yesteryear romance, progressive technologies and engineering, such as a world-class 8-speed transmission, advanced electronic aids and independent four-wheel steering, are baked into the deal. The 12Cilindri’s clean, stark design somehow toggles between retro and modern; and while vaguely polarising, one can’t ignore its magnetic road presence.

In terms of aesthetics, Ferrari describes the 12Cilindri as being “ready for space”; in many ways, a fantasy vehicle that transports users to another dimension is probably what the world needs right now.

The Numbers

Engine: 6.5-litre V12

Power: 610kW

Torque: 678 Nm

Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto

0-100 km/h: 2.95 seconds

Top speed: 340 km/h

Price: From $886,800

Photography by SONDR.
And the Winners Are:

Stay Connected

Inside Loro Piana’s First Sydney Boutique

A first Australian address brings the Italian house’s textile-led approach to retail full circle.

By Horacio Silva 26/03/2026

On the fourth floor of Westfield Sydney, near the Castlereagh and Market Street entrance—in the space formerly occupied by Chanel—Loro Piana has opened its first Australian boutique. It is a significant address change for that corner of the mall, and a meaningful one for the Italian house, which has sourced Australian merino wool for decades but until now had no retail presence here.

The facade is understated—creamy, tactile, more about texture than theatre. Inside, the store unfolds across a single, expansive level divided into distinct men’s and women’s wings. The separation is clear without being heavy-handed: womenswear leads from soft accessories and leather goods into ready-to-wear, while menswear occupies its own assured territory, with tailoring and outerwear given proper breathing room. Footwear (supple loafers, luxurious slides, pared-back sneakers) is particularly strong, and the sunglasses are a quiet standout: mineral-toned frames with a disciplined elegance that feels entirely of the house.

That same restraint carries into the interiors, where the surfaces do much of the talking. Walls are wrapped in the company’s own linen and cashmere; carpets are custom, dense underfoot, softening the acoustics and the pace. Oak and carabottino wood add warmth without fuss; marble accents introduce a cool counterpoint. The effect is a composed space calibrated around material, proportion and restraint.

The Spring 2026 collection now in store underscores that sensibility. Silhouettes are elongated and fluid; cashmere, silk and featherweight merino move in sandy neutrals, creams and muddied earth tones, with flashes of marigold and pale turquoise breaking the calm. Tailoring is softly structured and projects confidence without aggression. Leather goods arrive in buttery skins that feel almost pre-lived, as though time has already worked its magic.

What distinguishes Loro Piana, particularly in a market that has grown noisier by the season, is its refusal to perform luxury in an obvious register. There are no oversized insignias telegraphing allegiance. Instead, the status is encoded in fibre count, in hand-feel, in how a coat hangs from the shoulder. It assumes the wearer knows and, crucially, does not need to announce it.

Sydney’s luxury landscape has matured in recent years; global houses no longer test the waters but commit to them. Yet Loro Piana’s arrival feels different. It is not trend-driven expansion but material logic. For a country whose sheep stations have long contributed to the house’s fabric story, this boutique reads almost as a thank-you note written in cashmere.

 

Photography: Courtesy of Loro Piana.

 

 

Stay Connected

This Stylish, Water-Resistant Dopp Kit Might Be the Last One You Ever Buy

Patricks’s limited-edition wash bag is designed to keep liquids in and out, so it can come along wherever your travels take you.

By Justin Fenner 11/03/2026

If all you’re going to do is look at it, a leather Dopp kit from a fashion house is a fine choice. But if you take travelling seriously—and do it often, for business, pleasure, or both—such a bag will inevitably end up blemished with droplets of water or stained by errant flecks of toothpaste. Get stuck with a cavalier team of baggage handlers, and it can even get soaked in your favourite fragrance or anti-ageing serum.

But Patricks, the high-performance Australian grooming brand stocked in Harrods and Bergdorf Goodman, has a solution. Its limited-edition bathroom bag, called BB1, is purpose-built to protect everything inside and out. Conceived by industrial designer George Cunningham with brand founder Patrick Kidd, the cuboid design is executed in a water-resistant recycled nylon you can rinse clean. It’s lined with a thin layer of shock-absorbing foam to safeguard your products, but if a bottle somehow gets cracked in transit, the two-way water-resistant zippers and sealed seams (which keep liquids from seeping in or out) ensure that whatever leaks won’t ruin your cashmere. Inside, two dual-sided zippered compartments are ideally sized to fit toothbrushes, razors, and other small essentials.

And though its clean lines and rugged construction make it undeniably masculine, its greatest feature is borrowed from women’s makeup bags. Like the best of these, BB1 unzips to lie flat, giving you unobstructed access to everything inside. Well, you and the 999 other gentlemen who move fast enough to snag one. $289

Courtesy of Patricks

1. Hanging Loop 

The G-hook system isn’t just a stylish handle: You can also use it to hang the bag from a hook or secure it to your carry-on.

2. Two-Way Zipper

The closures are water-resistant in both directions, meaning liquids won’t get in or out.

3. Fold-flat Construction

BB1 opens to 180 degrees, letting you scan its 4.2-litre capacity at a quick glance.

4. Technical-Fabric Shell

The durable recycled-nylon is easy to maintain and woven to survive splashes and leaks from your go-to products.

Stay Connected

You Can Now Place Bets on the Future Prices of Rolex Models

And which models will get discontinued next, thanks to a new collaboration between Kalshi and Bezel.

By Nicole Hoey 11/03/2026

You can bet on pretty much anything these days, from when Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce will get married to who will be the next James Bond—and now that includes the Rollies on your wrist, or on your wishlist.

Prediction market platform Kalshi, regulated in the U.S., and luxe watch marketplace Bezel have teamed up on a new platform called Watch Futures that allows users to splash down cash on where they think the prices of a particular luxe timepiece are going, whether that’s a Rolex Submariner or a coveted Patek Philippe, Time & Tide reported.

You can also place a wager on which models might be discontinued, as well as any future launches from the top watchmakers on the new platform; with Watches and Wonders coming up, it’s certainly a well-timed launch that could see a lot of activity as a slew of new releases are announced at the event.

Watch Futures is all based on Beztimate, Bezel’s system (once used only internally) to help it accurately calculate the market price of a timepiece. It draws data from real-time transactions, live bids, verified sales, and other market offers to spawn its own series of independent valuation models to establish a watch’s value. From there, it’s up to bettors to place their wagers, and then the platform will showcase any price fluctuations or other updates as time goes on.

This new platform could have some pretty large implications for the watch industry.  As any horological savant would know, the internet and collectors alike are constantly chattering about which models are on the way out or when a certain timepiece of the moment’s time in the limelight will fade, of course, having a large impact on the prices of said model. And now, a Watch Futures user can have a direct stake in where a model is headed—and if they own said timepiece, it can be a protection from dwindling values on the marketplace, say, if a user places a bet on their model losing value and that actually comes to fruition.

To see Watch Futures in real time (and scope out how some pieces in your collection are faring), you can use the Kalshi app or its website.

Stay Connected