L’Entrepôt 7 rue Francis-de-Pressensé, 14e, M° Pernéty, tel: 01 45 40 60 70. Bar/restaurant: Mon-Fri & Sun 10-2am, Sat 6pm to 2am. Concerts: Thu 9-11pm, Fri-Sat 9:30pm to 12:30am. Admission 20F (with 1st drink). If you get bored here — something is wrong. This place is designed to satisfy several of your recreational urges simultaneously. Firstly, there is the restaurant (open for lunch and dinner), where you can savor fine French cuisine on a leafy terrace, or snug indoors in style. It offers two- to three-course formules (77-110F), as well as tasty à la carte dishes. Dining inside on wintry evenings — chances are you’ll be serenaded at the spacious yet congenial bar, by one of the bands that play here three nights a week. World music dominates, with regular acoustic jazz, blues and French chanson nights to complete the program. Every second Sunday you can jive to old time rock’n’roll with what looks like the cast from “Happy Days” — bobby sox, grease and all. But, this is the last, yet certainly not the least... of the leisure options that sets L’Entrepôt apart. It’s also home to a two-cinema movie theater that favors quality films mainly of the arty variety, with alternate Sundays devoted to a special screening followed by a philosophical discussion. So whether you’re looking for a few hours, or a whole weekend of entertainment — this most unpretentious and versatile of venues is highly recommended.
Chez Adel 10 rue de la Grange-aux-Belles, 10e, M° Jacques Bonsergent, tel: 01 42 08 24 61. Bar/restaurant: Mon-Fri 11am to 2:30pm & 6pm to 2am, Sat 3pm to 2am, Sun 12pm to 2am. Concerts: Mon-Fri 9pm, from 3pm Sat, all day Sun. Admission free.
Le P’tit velo 2 rue Clauzel, 9e, M° St-Georges, tel: 01 42 81 44 30. Bar/restaurant: Tue-Sat noon to 2:30pm & 7pm to midnight, Sun 7pm to midnight. Concerts: Mon-Sun 8pm. Admission free. What’s urban au naturel? Find out at this lively, funky little bar brimming with local color and potent performers. Erotic themes, music-poetry, French songs, afro-blues, jazz and theater pieces. All of that accompanied by juicy metro meals in the traditional French vein.
La Vieille Grille 1 rue des Puits-de-L’Hermite, 5e, M° Place Monge, tel: 01 47 07 22 11. Bar: Thu-Sun 6pm to noon, Tue-Wed 9 30pm to 12am. Restaurant: Tue-Sat, 7:30pm to midnight. Concerts: Thu-Sun 6pm, Tue-Wed 9pm. Admission: Thu-Sun 60F, Tue-Wed 90F, (no credit cards). A cute, café/theater-style niche with matching restaurant. Regular “Latin” and Klezmer nights during the week, with a mix of traditional jazz, world music and text readings on weekends. The type of cuisine varies in synch with the musical theme of the moment, and is served with a smile.
Petit Journal Montparnasse 14 rue du Commandant Mouchotte, 14e, M° Gaîté, tel: 01 43 21 56 70. Bar/restaurant: Mon-Sat 8pm to 2am. Concerts: 10pm. Admission 100-130F. Dinner & show from 280F. Little brother to its homonym at St-Michel, this jazz brasserie caters to fans of R&B, soul-gospel, dixieland, big band swing, latin rhythms and afro-fusion. The cuisine, while not as eclectic in nature as the music (traditional French), is nevertheless good jazz fan fare.
Kibélé 12 rue de L’Echiquier, 10e, M° Strasbourg St-Denis, tel: 01 48 24 57 74. Bar/restaurant: Mon-Sat noon to 3pm & 7pm to midnight. Concerts: Thu-Sat 9:30pm. Admission 50F. Friendly Turkish restaurant with a snug cellar catering for 60 world music fans. Dine, drop a level... And, drift away to the sounds of Eastern Europe and the Orient, in musical motion.
Les 7 Lézards 10 rue des Rosiers, 4e, M° St-Paul, tel: 01 48 87 08 97. Bar/restaurant: Mon & Tue 6pm-2am, Wed-Sun noon to 2am. Concerts: 9:30pm. Admission 70F/50F, (no credit cards). A jazz hubbub, featuring locals, expat and visiting US maestros in an adventurous modern mood. Prepare yourself for a frenzy of free-bopping improvisation, with a delicious, well-priced meal in the Mediterranean-style restaurant upstairs. Another hot tip — try the tapas as a starter to the evening.
Maxwell café 17 bd Vital-Bouhot (Ile de la Jatte) Neuilly-sur-Seine, M° Pont de Levallois, tel: 01 46 24 22 00. Concerts: Thu-Sat 10:30pm. Admission 100F/80F under 25s (Thu). Dinner & show from 250F, at 9pm. A blues haven dedicated to keeping the flame alive in a needy capital. This refurbished garage invites only genuine Afro-American artists to grace its stage. Meals are typically French, with a tendency toward dishes from the sunny south.
Cava Cava 9 rue Moret, 11e, M° Menilmontant, tel: 01 43 55 18 84. Bar/restaurant: Mon-Sun 7:30pm to 2am. Concerts: Fri-Sat 11pm, Sun 7:30pm. Admission Fri-Sat 40F, Sun 50F. A spot for all you lithe, latin groovers in search of dim lights and a sinful turn on the dancefloor. Move in calypso colors to the buoyant rhythms of salsa, rumba, mambo and cha-cha. The restaurant specializes in classic Cuban cuisine, and lays on a juicy buffet on Sundays.
Au Train de Vie 85 rue de la Verrerie, 4e, M° Hôtel de Ville, tel: 01 42 77 33 80. Restaurant: Tue-Fri noon to midnight, Sat 7pm to midnight, Sun noon to midnight. Concerts: Tue-Sat 9:30pm, Sun 5:30pm. This Jewish restaurant/teahouse on the edge of the Marais hosts fascinating musical evenings. Writer/philosopher Claude Berger invites mainly eastern European and Yiddish musicians to his downstairs den, along with regular jazz or classical maestros, poets and intellectuals.
Le Franc Pinot 1 quai de Bourbon, 4e, M° Pont Marie, tel: 01 46 33 60 64. Bar/restaurant: Tue-Sat 6:30pm to 2am. Concerts: Tue-Thu 8:30pm, Fri-Sat 9 30pm. Admission 120F/100F (with 1st drink). This leading Ile-de-la-Cité jazz cave hasn’t been around for as long as some of the historic edifices on the island, but when was the last time you saw gitan swing or rag jazz combos at Notre-Dame? French cuisine nightly and a jazz brunch on Sundays.
