Montmartre/Clichy Paris – All our local tips

Around diminutive tables and stools on the pavement a relaxed crowd of young arty types muse volubly over cheap beers, huge baguettes and plates of mixed charcuterie. Acquiring a table outside can take time, force or simply a bit of flirting but once ensconced you are likely to get chatting to neighbouring tables in no time.

Unlike some of Montmartre and the nearby Sacre Coeur, the Rendez-vous is scarcely tainted by the hoards of tourists; at first glance the quietly cool air of the place and almost exclusively French crowd can even seem a little intimidating. Persist though and you will find the atmosphere rather more relaxed and friendly.

Happy Hour (20:00 – 22:00) finds beers (pint) at € 4.00 and a pot of wine (50cl) at € 8.00. Baguettes as long as your arm packed with meat, cheese or paté cost € 3.50, salads are € 8.00 and charcuterie/cheese boards are € 8.00 to € 10.00.

On weekends bands (anything from chanson to jazz-funk or rock) play in the low ceilinged back-room; entrance is usually free. To sum up, Au Rendez-Vous des Amis is just that, an unaffected low-key venue, a lovely spot to have a drink with friends and a likely place to make new ones.

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Au Rendez-Vous des Amis | Bars, Music, Snacks | Baguette € 3.50
23 rue Gabrielle | Montmartre/Clichy | +33146060160
08:30 – 02:00 daily

It would be interesting to know how many customers have been served here. Brasserie Wepler, more than a century old and on one of the busiest squares of Paris, will without any doubt be high in Paris’ rankings.

It is one of countless typical brasseries for which Paris is famous, offering a quick but qualitative service with a very wide menu. Seafood platters are first choice, with the typical seafood counter located outside, on the sidewalk.

The restaurant reopened after a major renovation during summer 2008, but strange enough nothing appears to have changed!

Take a window table be surprised by the sheer number of people that will pass by.
It is also a good place for a drink/dinner before or after a movie next door in the big Pathe cinema.

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Brasserie Wepler | Restaurants (Seafood) | seafood platter from € 28.00
14, place de Clichy | Montmartre/Clichy | +330145225324
10:00 – 02:00 daily

Impossible to miss this café located right at the exit of the friendly and popular Lamarck-Caulaincourt metro station.

The terrace in front of the bar gives a nice view of the typical Montmartre steps that lead up and down the mouth of the metro station, and guarantees a continuing life play of moving people. The bar itself offers traditional and simple charm.

Although in the heart of Montmartre, the bar mainly caters to locals of all types. Couples drinking a glass of wine, workers having a quick café at the counter, or others sealing some contract with draft beer and peanuts. Staff is very friendly.

Right next to the bar is a stand selling papers and magazines, providing you with a literary cover while enjoying the late afternoon sun rays or the terrace conversations.

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Café Le Refuge | Bars | Beer € 3.00
72, Rue Lamarck | Montmartre/Clichy | +33142552758
Mon – Sat 07:30 – 00:00, Sun 09:00 – 00:00

An original cemetery is the cats and dogs’ one, located in Asnières (suburbs near Paris).

French people are not particularly animal rights activists, but they love pets! And for more than a century now, petlovers can bury their pets in this special cemetery, located in a very peaceful and beautiful area along the river Seine.

Reading the pets’ names, their owners’ short epitaphs (some of them are in English) is quite entertaining, and there are actually beautiful graves, showing how some people are more attached to animals than to human beings. The place also hosts a shelter for abandoned cats, which brings life to this area where death reigns.

To get there: metro line 13, until « Gabriel Péri » (be careful, you have to use the yellow branch after « La Fourche »), or bus 54 until « Place Voltaire ».

If you’re still in the mood for another cemetery, walk along the Seine opposite its flow and cross the next bridge until rue Baudin, in Levallois-Perret: this (human) cemetery (not as famous as the big three: Père-Lachaise, Montparnasse and Montmartre) hosts a Brtitish WW1 memorial, and the graves of Gustave Eiffel (you might have heard of his tower…), Maurice Ravel (you might know his Bolero) and Louise Michel (the Red Virgin, a key figure of the Commune). Open between 9 and 17.

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Cimetière des chiens | Art & culture, Relaxing | Entrance fee € 3.00
Parc Robinson (Asnières-sur-Seine) | Montmartre/Clichy
Tue – Sun 10:00 – 16:30

I’ve never had any difficulties finding a good meal in Paris, but it can be tricky to find a restaurant that provides both an original location and reasonable, imaginative food.

It was a happy day therefore when I first discovered L’Aromatik, a jazz era venue where food is the music of life! The décor is pure 1930s and as fresh as the produce on your plate, with the original art deco fittings tastefully retouched in crisp sky blues, sunshine yellows and flashes of raspberry reds. The restaurant is not a large one, but the large mirrors, healthy pot plants and subtle lighting give the venue a feeling of space and well-being.

With the cool notes of jazz surrounding you it is easy to imagine Josephine Baker, a regular here in the early days, at the next table. She would have no problem recognising her old haunt, and would surely have appreciated the concerts that are held on Monday evenings. Thankfully though, this is not just a venue that draws on its heritage and atmosphere, but is also a table that is designed to appeal to the taste buds.

The menu is based around seasonal, organic produce, spinning Asian influences into classic bistrot favourites. The wine list is also heavily weighted in favour of organic producers, and there is even a full organic brunch offered at weekends.

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L’Aromatik | Restaurants (Organic) | Starter/main at lunchtime € 15.90
7, Rue Jean-Baptiste Pigalle | Montmartre/Clichy | +330148746227
Mon – Sun 10:00 – 15:00 & 19:00 – 01:00

Le Marmite Bazar is probably my favourite restaurant in Paris. I hesitate to say it because the temptation in a city is always to try something new, but here I know that I will always have an exceptional meal and I’ll always regret having gone elsewhere. There is no fashinable décor to divert, instead a warm ethnic shine, a colourful trip around the world and a circuit that continues in the plate.

Caroline Choain, the chef and owner, is a culinary genius. She has a rare appreciation of flavours and textures, a skill at choosing and dosing spices and herbs and yet she still also manages to present everything beautifully. Is there anything she cannot do? What she can certainly do is create is the best Panna Cotta in Paris, one that changes with the seasons. On my last visit, it was infused with Vanilla, surrounded with a delicious salted butter caramel and presented with slices of fresh, crunchy apple. So good that I took a photo (see above!)

Quiet and calm at lunchtimes it is livelier in the evenings with occasional theme events also organised. Sunday lunchtimes are given over to an original and appetising buffet brunch.

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Le Marmite Bazar | Bars, Restaurants (French) | Lunchtime formula € 14.00
14 Rue Bochard de Saron | Montmartre/Clichy | +330148785147
Tue – Sun lunchtime

This is every man’s dream, at least as far as shaving is concerned. A whole shop completely dedicated to the ritual of shaving!

They have all razors, shavers, brushes and mirrors you can imagine, as well as all accessories.

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Planète Rasoir | Shopping
58, rue de Clichy | Montmartre/Clichy | +33142851608
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 19:00

The rue des Abbesses in Montmartre (or just “Abbesses”) is a village street in the big city.

It is here that the locals from Montmartre do their Saturday morning/afternoon groceries. With many little fruit shops, bakeries and coffee bars it turns the duties of the week into a free time pleasure.

Although the street, close to Pigalle and the Sacré Coeur, gets its fair share of tourists during the day, it remains a place where authenticity is still dominant.

Try a baguette (or better, a “tradition”) from Coquelicot (nr 24) or take a coffee brake at the counter of Le Village (Nr 36). You can also stroll down the descending street Rue Lepic (also very pleasant) and buy some extremely good French cheeses at nr 20.

The large terraces of bars Le vrai Paris and Le Sancerre (Abbesses nrs 35 and 33) are always busy (In wintertime they are heated).

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Rue de Abbesses | Coffee & tea, Shopping, Restaurants (French)
Rue des Abbesses | Montmartre/Clichy
Daily

One of my favourite places in Paris is the Sacré Coeur which is a Roman Catholic Church located on the top of Montmartre hill. I have had the opportunity to see this beautiful white church building in the summer, autumn, winter and spring. It looks different on every occasion. Most visitors won’t have such a chance to see it in every season, but if you can, I recommend going to see it twice, by day and by night.

I have lots of memories of the Sacré Coeur. On my second day in the city I remember sitting on the steps below it watching the sun go down on the Parisian horizon while listening to two men busking. I couldn’t believe I  had just moved to Paris and was sitting there on an autumn Sunday late afternoon. As I sat back I almost felt like I had become part of the famous French film “The Fabulous Destiny of Amélie Poulain”.

The Sacre Coeur is the perfect place to relive this film and so after every visit I pass by the bar Café des Deux Moulins on 15 rue Lepic at rue Cauchois. This bar is where Amélie worked in the film and it is exactly the same  in real life. Inside there is a huge poster dedicated to the actress Audrey Tautou who played Amélie.

With cheap flights to Paris everyday it is easy to visit the capital of romance, fashion, culture and art.

I’m far from being a chocoholic, and normally have no problems resisting the temptations of the exuberant window displays of the traditional Paris chocolatier. My tastes are more geared towards the simple and natural, and I find the pralines and ganaches offered by most establishments to be over-rich and slightly sickly.

Via Chocolat is a different kind of establishment though, being a showroom (or Cho’room as they describe themselves) for a constantly changing selection of the best independent chocolate producers in the country. The showroom is simple and slick, with photos of the producers being more visible than the chocolates themselves which are hidden secretly away in sliding drawers.

The chocolates are sold in a wide range of box sizes, with staff making a selection according to your personal preferences. Some are infused with teas, fruits or flowers, some have a slight kick of chilli or ginger whilst others offer a twist of the truly original, such as a warm aroma of honey or a crunch of salt. They feel homemade when you bite into them, the thin crust cracking and giving way to smooth, whipped centres.

As well as the individual chocolates, tablets are also available ranging from classic strong dark chocolate to the astonishing ‘aperitif’ bar which is packed with popcorn, nuts and dried tomatoes!

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Via Chocolat | Shopping, Snacks | Tablet € 3.00
5 Rue Jean-Baptiste Pigalle | Montmartre/Clichy | +330145261273
Tue – Fri 13:00 – 19:30, Sat 10:30 – 20:00