A Taste of Old Paris, Wrapped in Chocolate

One of my favourite things about wandering through the streets of Paris is stumbling across places that feel almost untouched by time. You know the ones : the faded signs, the worn mosaic floors, the brass handles polished by thousands of hands before yours. And behind those doors : stories, recipes, and secrets that have survived revolutions, wars, and the endless rush of modern life…

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Among these rare gems, there is one address I return to every time I crave a little taste of sweet history : À la Mère de Famille. More than just a chocolatier, it’s a portal into 18th-century Paris, a place where tradition still breathes through the scent of candied chestnuts and the gleam of copper moulds

I remember the first time I stepped inside. It was a grey winter afternoon, the kind when your nose and fingertips sting from the cold, and the city glows through mist and Christmas lights. I pushed open the heavy wooden door and was instantly wrapped in warmth and sugar , a world away from the busy faubourg Montmartre outside.

In a city constantly reinventing itself, À la Mère de Famille is a reminder that some things are too precious to change. It’s a family business, a living museum, and above all, a temple for chocolate lovers. It feels like a secret, even though it has stood proudly on its corner since 1761.

So today, I want to take you there , through words, through the scent of cocoa and sugar, and through a story that melts as sweetly as its finest praline.

You can’t walk past it without admiring its window and wanting to buy everything there, “A la Mère de Famille” is the oldest chocolate factory in Paris.

An historic chocolaterie

The history of À la Mère de Famille begins in 1761. The chocolate factory -confiserie has become over the centuries a real institution and also offers ice cream and pastries. The historic boutique and its listed façade, at the corner of the streets of the faubourg Montmartre and Richer, is worth a visit. Inside, it is a paradise for lovers of sweets: old-fashioned jars, nougats, bergamots, caramels, pralines or marshmallow squares.

And why not let yourself be tempted, from November, to the house’s candied chestnuts, considered to be the best in the capital. A monument ! Many other addresses exist in Paris.