La Maison de l'Éclusier, Canal de l'Ourcq, Claye-Souilly
Follow the Canal de l'Ourcq eastward from the Paris Region's industrial fringe and within 20 km you reach a stretch of genuine rural waterway beauty. The Maison de l'Éclusier at the Claye-Souilly lock is a restored lockkeeper's cottage turned guinguette-style restaurant serving seasonal French bistro food on a terrace that hangs directly over the water.
What's on the Plate
The menu changes with the market but reliably features dishes built around Seine-et-Marne produce — duck confit from local farms, Brie de Meaux in every possible form, and in autumn a wild mushroom and chestnut soup that is worth the 25-minute drive from CDG alone. The wine list leans toward small Loire and Burgundy producers at honest prices.
Weekend lunches draw a relaxed local crowd of cyclists who have pedalled out along the canal towpath from Bondy or Sevran — the energy is convivial and unhurried in a way that no airport brasserie can replicate.
The Canal Towpath Experience
The Canal de l'Ourcq towpath between Sevran and Claye-Souilly is flat, well-surfaced and car-free, making it one of the best easy cycling routes in the northern Paris Region. Rent a bike in Aulnay-sous-Bois or Sevran and pedal the 15 km to lunch, then take a taxi or bus back.
The canal itself carries occasional hotel barges and small pleasure boats; watching a péniché navigate the Claye-Souilly lock while eating cheese and drinking a glass of Muscadet is a deeply, specifically French pleasure.
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