This reinforced concrete den used to act as a rice storehouse before being turned into a coffee shop / art gallery by Youtchen Su Bounkeut (the head barista and manager – ex-Sugar Blue in Nantes, Jocteur in Lyon and Première Moisson in Montreal) and Eleanor Grace Jackson (the chef). That’s where freelancers in the Madeleine neighborhood sip their specialty coffees sourced from across Europe – Goat Story in Slovenia, Coffea Circulor in Norway, Kawa in France – in which pastries from Maison Arlot-Cheng (a 2023 Guide Fooding award winner) get dunked. At lunch, they serve small plates made with carefully chosen ingredients, most notably from the fruit and vegetable vendor Alice Menard, like the spelt-khorasan wheat flatbread stuffed with mushrooms, sautéed chard, black garlic sauce and pine nuts, served with a small side salad. And if you want to bring a taste of Madeleine home with you, there’s an épicerie corner: AeroPress, Piqu’Hans hot sauces, sticky chai, local honey or even Agnes & Pierre chocolates. The space also regularly displays and sells art by local artists. // Kate Bouche
FEELING THIRSTY? : All the classic caffeinated hits: drip coffee of the day (€3.50), flat whites and cold brew (€4), iced lattes with oat milk (€4.50) or iced strawberry matchas (€6), along with Vergers de la Silve organic juice (€3.50), Little Joy Brewing kombucha (€4.80) and beer from Brasserie Perraut (€5 for 330 ml).
PRICE: : Breakfast bowl €6, cakes and viennoiseries €2 to €4.50, mains €11-14.
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