Category Archives: Metro Guide

Portrait: The Little Red Door in the Haut Marais of Paris

The Little Red Door is less of a speakeasy, and more of an idea. Whereas other speakeasies are hidden by facades–telephone booths, taquerias and dark alleys–this speakeasy rests behind a Ferrari Testarossa of a door. It calls the attention to all who pass. Le Carreau De Temple – 3e On a bright Saturday afternoon, IContinue reading “Portrait: The Little Red Door in the Haut Marais of Paris”

The Bowtie’s Big Ass Guide to Every Neighbourhood of Paris: Belleville

December 2018 There’s a reason that Parisians stay hush-hush about the panorama at the top of Belleville Parc. ‘Go to Montmartre,’ they’ll say. Setting. Red, neon words ‘Le President’ hang over the riffraff like a heavyweight championship belt. Beneath, Chinese Hanji are spangled in gold. Enter the chaotic intersection of Belleville station. It’s a littleContinue reading “The Bowtie’s Big Ass Guide to Every Neighbourhood of Paris: Belleville”

Landscape Mode: Subversive Tiki Cocktails and the Unknown Territory of Solera

While planted in a residential wasteland, this bar has defined its own terrain. Normally, cocktails lie in the 3rd, 10th, 11th, or 18th, and only in the 6th on this side of the river. With its location and its glassware, Solera is subverting expectations on two separate occasions.

The Bowtie’s Big Ass Guide to Every Neighbourhood in Paris: Jacques Bonsergent

Scene. Limpid water runs through, halving the quarter, with cafe’s, art galleries and bars on both banks. Bridges loop over Canal Saint Martin. Dangling limbs of deciduous trees and street art span down the length of the promenades. Narrow roads zigzag. Jagged corners cut from old stone buildings, and in between, long shadows, hidden passagesContinue reading “The Bowtie’s Big Ass Guide to Every Neighbourhood in Paris: Jacques Bonsergent”

The Bowtie’s Big Ass Guide to Every Neighbourhood in Paris: Denfert Rochereau

Lines seem to be a theme in Denfert Rochereau. You ascend the staircase, and just across the street is a line for the Catacombs. On the West side is a line for the ORLY Bus. To the Southwest, I’ve seen Cafe Oz have lines that intersect the line for the ORLY Bus. It’s almost aContinue reading “The Bowtie’s Big Ass Guide to Every Neighbourhood in Paris: Denfert Rochereau”

The Bowtie’s Guide to Porte D’Orleans: A Sentimental Dump

The Southern gate of a wall destroyed in World War 1, Porte D’Orleans looks like it hasn’t gotten its act together since. For about a month and a half now, I’ve been living in Paris, and I’ve walked through this hub, maybe 100 times. It’s not a pretty place. I said it Paris, Porte D’OrleansContinue reading “The Bowtie’s Guide to Porte D’Orleans: A Sentimental Dump”