Marché des Enfants Rouges

Commissioned by Louis XIII in 1615 and named after a former orphanage where the children wore red coats, Marché des Enfants Rouges is the oldest covered market in Paris and a listed historical monument. Today its 21 stalls function as the Marais's communal canteen at lunchtime: Moroccan tajines, Japanese bento, Italian pasta, Provençal stalls, Lebanese mezze, plus the famous sandwich counter Chez Alain Miam Miam. There's no maître d', no booking, no seated service, you queue, you eat at communal benches, you leave. Anchor the entry as a single venue rather than 21, it's a Marais ritual rather than any one meal, and it's the rare Paris experience that Istanbullu visitors instinctively understand.