Causeries

Forty-five years later, it’s time to say goodbye to Royal Bar, and hello to this new multifaceted spot where you can chat up a storm, unveiled without too much fuss by Matthieu Meisse and Clément Hu – a duo already responsible for the nearby I/O Café and Caractère, along with Prélude Café in Rouen. The Sunday afternoon we stopped by, at the entrance that previously housed stables (now featuring colorful tiling, bistro-style benches and a nostalgic vinyl collection), we had trouble deciding if we wanted a coffee or a glass of wine. Because in addition to a bilingual French-English menu boasting both black coffee and V60 pour-over (made with beans from the Danish roasters La Cabra), along with Kodama teas, hot chocolate, chai lattes, Umami matcha and espresso tonics, we spotted a selection of living beers in the drink fridge (a white ale from the Brasserie Perle in Strasbourg or a Brussels-made kriek from Cantillon), along with clean wines, including Rouge Gorge Vieilles Vignes from the Roussillon producer Cyril Fhal (€58 a bottle). To go with all that? Your choice of vanilla cannelé, lemon cake, madeleines, pecorino and black pepper savory panettone (from Christophe Louie), cheeses, jambon de Paris baked ham or Pyscis tinned fish. // Anna Elisabeth

THE HIDDEN GEM: The chocolate croissant made by Christophe Louie (€3).