One of the summer pleasures of Paris is having a drink at an outdoor cafe terrace. “Paris Terrasses, Outdoor Dining in Paris” published just in time for the season is a new 2014 updated bilingual guide to Paris’ outdoor dining gems ranging from terraces on rooftops such as “Les Ombres” decorated by the archtect Jean Nouvel at the Musee Branly with its stunning view of the Eiffel Tower to more intimate settings such as the inner terrace at the Entrepot, a multicultural venue with live music, theater and home of Paris’ legendary art movie house.
The Entrepot’s terrace with only forty tables is not especial big, but it benefits from the shade of the plane trees lining an old alley which once lead to a presbytery. In the evening the atmosphere is magical, when the mysterious cone-shaped sculptures illuminate the garden.
Author Simon Roger (Le Monde journalist) and photographer Sylvain Ageorges include in this edition one of my favorites, Le Bal Café, which is part chic cafe, part photography exhibition space and part photo bookstore. Sitting on their terrace thumbing a photo book is a true Paris pleasure.
Le Bal’s Sunday brunch gets top reviews. Says café manager Anselme Blayney “Our brunch is a real breakfast and lunch, with sausages, scones, bacon and eggs Welsh rarebit or banana bread.” The people who frequent the place are a delightful mix of photo aficionados and Parisian hipsters recalling Le Bal’s colorful past. In the Roaring Twenties the building housed a dance hall, Chez Isis.
“Paris Terrasses, Outdoor Dinning in Paris;” (2014) Simon Roger and Sylvain Ageorges, Parigramme. Price:14 Euros.