Located in the heart of the palace, jeweler, and luxury boutique district, the “Au Petit Bar” is a dream study location for a bar ethnologist.
This quaint establishment has been in the same family for 50 years. Here, you won’t find credit card payment options, and certainly no WiFi. However, the vintage rotary phone on the original formica counter serves a purpose beyond mere decoration.
The owner, Jean Dalle (83 years old), originally from Lozère near Marvejols, has been at the helm of this establishment since 1966 with his wife Marie (82 years old). It seems that running a bistro keeps you young, as they are assisted by their two sons, Hubert and Michel.
Having arrived in the capital in 1956, Jean spent 10 years as a café waiter before finding his way to this small street on Mont Thabor. In the first year, like many of his compatriots before him, he lugged 50 kg bags of coal for a Levallois bougnat.
This 24-seat tavern has hardly changed in fifty years. “I get lost in these new cafés with their decorations, do they really attract a lot of people?” Marie mischievously questions. Every weekday at noon, she busies herself at the stove, preparing potatoes for fries, cooking haricot beans, and keeping an eye on the leg of lamb. Meanwhile, her son Michel lends a hand, while Hubert manages the counter.
The “Au Petit” Bar has a weekly menu: salted pork with lentils on Monday, veal roast on Tuesday, roast beef with homemade fries on Wednesday, Auvergne sausage with mashed potatoes on Thursday, and leg of lamb with cooked haricot beans on Friday.
The egg mayonnaise or herring fillet are priced at 4.50€. The charcuterie platter is 9€. At 11.50€, the dish of the day is arguably the best value for money for hundreds of meters around this beautiful 1st arrondissement.
Nevertheless, even this “Au Petit Bar” is not immune to a certain customer disaffection. “We’ve rarely seen a worse season (than this first quarter of 2015 – Editor’s note); people aren’t going to the café, they’re going skiing. What will become of them if they don’t eat anything? For me, a snack always comes before holidays,” Marie quips.
There are five wines to choose from, all from the Richard vineyard. A bottle of house red is priced at 12€, while the Côtes-du-Rhône or Bordeaux is priced at 18€. Ah, if only real life could be as simple and inexpensive as it is at Au Petit Bar.
Metro: Line 1 Tuileries, Line 7 and 14 Pyramides
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