Eating in Paris: French Pasta Champion Shares Top Addresses
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Sugo serves fresh pasta crafted from the finest Italian ingredients. Emily Monaco interviews founder Arthur Dumait, vice-champion de France de pasta fresca
There was a time Arthur Dumait was a regular at Passerini, but since opening his Sugo in 2023, he’s not quite as frequent a flier. It’s nothing to do with the food, which he says, “I like a lot.” But seeing as Sugo specializes in fresh pastas similar to the ones he enjoyed while living in Rome, Dumait admits, “I don’t really go to Italian restaurants much since opening my own.” That said, this restaurateur has got loads of insider spots to share, from Paris’ top Italian tables to local spots in his Montmartre backyard.
Dumait starts his morning as many do, from Rome to Paris: “For me, in the morning. It’s coffee. Café au lait.” He makes his first brew at home with beans from the Brûlerie Montmartre (66 rue Damrémont, 18th) just downstairs from his apartment. “They roast on-site, and they make really good coffee,” he says. “I’ve known them for 10 years, and I love getting my coffee there.”
Arthur Dumait, founder of SUGO. Photo: @ Salome Rateau
But while a coffee is all he needs most mornings, on his days off, he takes a bit more of a leisurely approach. Montmartre’s Two Doors “do a very, very good cappuccino,” he says. “I go often at the weekend to just chill and read. Whenever I’m not at home or at work.”
And if he wants something more copious, Dumait tends to head to Holybelly for a Savoury Stack, with two pancakes, two organic sunny-side up eggs, maple marinated bacon, bourbon butter, bacon salt, and maple syrup.
Dumait tends to wait until the lunch service at Sugo has nearly ended before taking his midday break at one of a handful of cantines sharing space in the central 2nd arrondissement. He loves Ace, a small former butcher shop on rue Sainte-Anne now known for its top-notch Korean food, as well as Kodawari for its exquisite ramen. For professional lunches, he tends to gravitate towards old-school French bistros like Drouant, which he loves for its history and Art Deco flair, or Gavroche, just steps from Sugo. “I I like that ambience: a traditional little bistro that’s authentic and good and doesn’t take itself too seriously,” he says.
He’s similarly charmed by old-school bistro fare, like egg-mayo, leek-vinaigrette, and saucisse-purée. “The classics. That’s what you go for,” he says. “You go for the ambiance, for the owner, for the décor.”
“There are so many bistros that are disappearing,” he continues. “The old zinc bars and the old tiles, the Formica tables.” And it’s this aspect, he says, “that I love to find when I go to bistros.”
Drouant. Photo: Matthieu Salvaing
In the evening, Dumait’s go-tos are caves à manger, wine bars known for their simple yet well-conceived small plates. “Natural wine. Simple. Efficient. Good prices. Laid-back service. That’s the kind of place I like.”
Café du Coin and L’Orillon in the 11th both tick all these boxes with their internationally-accented, ingredient-driven small plates like white tuna paired with beetroot and toum at the former or veal tartare with bottarga, hazelnuts, and orange at the latter. “I go to Le Verre Volé a lot,” he adds, evoking one of the city’s earliest examples of the genre, just off the Canal Saint-Martin. “It’s one of my favorite spots.”
Dumait’s career has led him to work in no shortage of Italian spots, from Eataly to Carboni’s. And while these days, he tends to eat Italian food only at his own Sugo, he does still have a soft spot for Passerini, Passerina, and Racines in the covered Passage des Panoramas. And Carboni’s underground bar, Sotto, remains a favorite.
Dumait also loves to cook meals at home. He sources his cheeses from Quatrehomme and Chez Virginie, which he cites as one of the city’s top fromagers… conveniently located just steps from his home. And while he notes that he loves preparing lighter vegetarian meals, occasionally, he’ll source a dry-aged piece of beef from a butcher in the 18th who specializes in these flavorful cuts. “That’s something I quite like to make at home,” he says, “rather than eating it in a restaurant.”
Dumait may not be the best person to get advice on desserts. “I don’t have much of a sweet tooth,” he admits. Nevertheless, he does have a soft spot for Tâpisserie, the pastry shop from the folks behind Septime and Clamato. “It’s really very, very good,” he says, noting a particular soft spot for the richly scented vanilla flan.
After dinner, Dumait has a handful of local bars he loves, including Bambino in the 11th or le Mansart in Montmartre. “That’s where I go to meet up with my friends,” he says. That said, rather than become a regular, he’s forever enticed by the idea of trying somewhere new.
“Honestly, for such a long time, I worked in the evenings, and so I didn’t have much time,” he says. “There are so many places in Paris. It’s hard to go back to the same one too often.”
SUGO
16 Rue Saint-Augustin, 2nd
Tel: +33 (0)1 88 61 24 12
Open every day, Monday-Friday: 12 – 2:30 pm, 7 pm – 10 pm
Sat: 12 – 3 pm, 7 pm – 10 pm
Sun: 12 – 3 pm
Arthur Dumait, founder of Sugo. Photo: @ Salome Rateau
Lead photo credit : Arthur Dumait, founder of Sugo. Photo: @ Salome Rateau
More in Arthur Dumait, Italian, Italian food in Paris, Sugo
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