Websites

Recently I’ve tried a few places from Paris by Mouth1 and they’ve been good.

Bars

Le Fumoir, 6 Rue de l’Amiral de Coligny, 75001

One of my very favourite places to drink, particularly in the early evening. It’s handy for the Louvre (just head east from le pavillion d’horologe) and the Louvre-Rivoli metro station.

The bar’s quite dark inside which lends it a slightly subdued elegance, though photophiles would probably prefer somewhere brighter. I particularly like the tables next to the south-facing windows through which warm light flows if you’re lucky with the time and weather.

One can dine here too, but I usually stick to their dry martinis.

November 2010 update: I fear their dry martinis have got a bit too wet, but damp is often a problem in winter.

October 2011 update: They now appear to offer some amazing Happy Hour deals where the marginal cost of a second drink is trivially small!

October 2012 update: The overly wet martinis persist, but thankfully the problem can be mitigated by ‘very, very dry’.

August 2014 update: The martinis have improved, the atmosphere remains wonderful, and I had dinner here too. The food was great, so I had lunch a few days later too!

For more details see their website,2 or Google Maps.3

Last visited August 2014.

Ô Chateau, 68, rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau, 75001

A fine wine bar with a varied cellar and many wines by the glass. There’s a limited, but good, range of tapas and more substantial food too.

For more details see their website,4 or Google Maps.5

Last visited October 2012.

Bar 8, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, 251 rue Saint-Honoré, 75001

Just perfect!

A lovely atmosphere if you’re in the mood for that elegant, high-end hotel chic, and quite magnificent cocktails. I tried the ‘Laphroaig smash’, which manages to seamlessly interpolate blackberries and mint into the smokey complexity of the whisky. Amazing!

For more details see their website,6 or Google Maps.7

Last visited August 2014. h3. Môm, 4–6, rue Pierre Demours, 75017

A stylish and somewhat trendy place, which nevertheless made a perfectly good martini.

For more details see their website,8 or Google Maps.9

Last visited October 2012.