Belleville & Ménilmontant
Your guide to Paris' cool northeast quarters (11th & 20th)
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La Bellevilloise
Ménilmontant's hotspot for dinner, cocktails, concerts and a boogie
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Musée Edith Piaf
See where the mythologised singer once lived
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La Maroquinerie
Where to get up close and personal with emmerging bands
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Maison des Métallos
Fancy a bit of Slam with your photo exhibition?
When the city's northern boundaries were expanded in 1860, Ménilmontant and Belleville (once villages that provided Paris with wine and weekend escapes) were absorbed into central Paris, first housing migrants from rural France, then populations from former colonies in North Africa and Asia. Nowadays it's still cheap and cosmopolitan with artists' colonies in its upper stretches and a Chinese quarter around the bd de Belleville. Up on the slopes of Les Hauts de Belleville, there are great views over the city from rue Piat and rue des Envierges, which lead to the modern but charming Parc de Belleville. Another parkland to explore nearby is Père Lachaise cemetery, where the likes of Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde and 'little sparrow' Edith Piaf party in the afterlife.
'Mesnil-Montant' used to be just a few houses on a hill with vines and fruit trees - then came the bistros, bordellos and worker' houses. These days it's a thriving centre of alternative Paris, as artists and young professionals have moved in. Although several side streets still have male-only North African cafés, rue Boyer is home to two of Paris' most buzzing venues, the Bellevilloise multidisciplinary arts centre and La Maroquinerie concert hall. You'll also find a profusion of hip bars along rue de Ménilmontant, which descends into Oberkampf, home to yet more nightlife entertainment. Heading east of here, beyond Père Lachaise, follow the 'it' crowds to rue de Bagnolet for drinks at Philippe Starck-designed Mama Shelter hotel and music at Flêche d'Or, a concert hall set in a former train station.
Restaurants & Cafés in Belleville & Ménilmontant
1979
1979, between Châtelet and the Louvre, succeeds in being many things to many cool people. Part café, bar, restaurant and club, there’s something tangibly hip about the place. It helps that the hip décor and slick black, white and bright green colour scheme were designed by a big cheese at Saatchi and Saatchi Paris. At noon, it’s a top spot for a relatively quiet well-priced French/fusion brunch...
Aarapana
Known for its fun and frolics all year round, Paris’s Latin Quarter is the perfect locale for Aarpana’s highly knowledgeable, alluring way with Indian cuisine. Set away on the Rue du Petit Pont, the smallest street in Paris, and amidst historical landmarks like the Notre Dame and Musee de Cluny, this extremely welcoming and well positioned Indian restaurant prides itself on its fresh breads and...
Aasman
One of several restaurants lining Rue Daguerre on the edge of Montparnasse in Paris 14th, Aasman remains as safe and solid as the day it opened over 20 years ago. Traditional homemade Indian dishes, familiar yet fresh, offered with a choice of colourful, unctuous sauces, including the much-loved shai korma. Don’t eat a thing without tearing into one of four house nan first. Both the food and...
Attractions in Belleville & Ménilmontant
104 (Centquatre)
It's more than a century since Montmartre was the centre of artistic activity in Paris. But now the north of Paris is again where the action is - albeit a couple of kilometres east of place du Tertre, in a previously neglected area of bleak railway goods yards and dilapidated social housing.104, described as a 'space for artistic creation', occupies a vast 19th-century building on the rue...
Arc de Triomphe
The Arc de Triomphe is the city's second most iconic monument after the Eiffel Tower - older, shorter, but far more symbolically important: indeed, the island on which it stands, in the centre of the vast traffic junction of l'Etoile, is the nearest thing to sacred ground in all of secular France, indelibly associated as it is with two of French history's greatest men.The first was the man who...
Arènes de Lutèce
This Roman arena, where wild beasts and gladiators fought, could seat 10,000 people. It was still visible during the reign of Philippe-Auguste in the 12th century, then disappeared under rubble. The site was rediscovered in 1869 and now incorporates a romantically planted garden. These days, it attracts skateboarders, footballers and boules players.
Music & Nightlife in Belleville & Ménilmontant
La Flèche d'Or
- Critics choice
This much-loved indie and electro venue, which reopened in November 2009 after a six-month shutdown, is set in the old Charonne train station - a quirky setting for concerts by a stream of local and international groups and DJs. Needless to say the line ups are eclectic, with three or four bands a night.
- 102 bis rue de Bagnolet, 20e, Paris, France
Mama Shelter
- Critics choice
You don't have to have a room at Mama Shelter hotel to take advantage of its bar and restaurant - veritable dens of cool, frequented by international fashionistas. Prop yourself up at the bar for cocktails like 'Mama Loves You' (Vodka Russian Standard, abricot Brandy, jus de Cranberry) and 'Lemon Tree' (Vodka Smirnoff black, apple juice, lime and lemongrass cordial); then soak it all up with the...
- 109 rue de Bagnolet, 20e, Paris, France
L'International
- Critics choice
- Free
This concert-bar is a breath of fresh air, with free entry and a string of on-the-up bands playing to hip indie crowds every night of the week. Once a month there's an after-party until 4am.
- 5-7 rue Moret, 11e, Paris, France
Nouveau Casino
- Critics choice
Bankable, loveable and conveniently surrounded by the numerous bars of rue Oberkampf and tucked behind the legendary Café Charbon, Nouveau Casino is a concert venue that also hosts some of the city's liveliest club nights. Local collectives, international names and record labels, such as Versatile, regularly host nights here; it's well worth checking the website for one-offs and after-parties.
- 109 rue Oberkampf, 11e, Paris, France
La Bellevilloise
- Rated as: 5/5
- Critics choice
The Bellevilloise is the latest incarnation of a building that once housed the capital's very first workers' co-operative. Now it competently multitasks as a bar, restaurant, club and exhibition space, hosting regular film and music festivals on the top level (where there's a fake lawn with deckchairs and a massage area). Enjoy brunch in the Halle aux Oliviers or decent views of the quartier from...
- 19-21 rue Boyer, 20e, Paris, France
La Maroquinerie
- Rated as: 5/5
- Critics choice
La Maroquinerie's former life as a leather factory is little in evidence these days. It's now a bright café and bar in competition with La Bellevilloise, with a coveted downstairs concert venue that hosts the odd literary debate and a wealth of cool music acts. It's home to the Inrocks Indie Club nights, but there are still traces of its world music roots. The food is excellent - you can eat...
- 23 rue Boyer, 20e, Paris, France
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