Cafe & bar, Chez Jeanette, is quintessentially shabby chic. Go there any night of the week and you will find stylish twenty-something Parisians in their masses drinking with friends and nibbling on platters of charcuterie.
The crowds gathered by the bar often spew out into the quaint backstreets of the downtown quartier to smoke. Off the well-beaten tourists track this café/bar is where the real French people hang-out and discuss things dear to their hearts such as what François Hollande has been up to, what an eye sore that Eiffel Tower is and where they can play their next game of boules (just to generalise a little!)
The nearest metro stations are Strasbourg Saint-Denis and Chateau d'Eau both on metro line 4. Many similar trendy bars are popping up all the time in this up and coming area. The story goes that the previous owner named, Jeannette, didn't want to sell her beloved bar but reluctantly did so on the basis that the new owner couldn't change the name, thus, it remains
Chez Jeanette.
The current proprietor went one step further and restored the dated interiors to their former glory and embraced the original features such as the dingy lamps hanging of the walls, the dated wallpaper, curling at the edges and yellowing from cigarette smoke and tiny PVC covered booths. The venue evokes a sense of a by-gone era, revealing lots about what kind of a place Paris was in the early 20th century. Chez Jeanette serve traditional French dishes which are very popular with the local clientele. With à la carte prices ranging from €13 to €22 its pretty good value for money compared with other Parisian restaurants. They also mix great cocktails, I tried a Bloody Mary and my friend sampled their Cosmopolitan; both went down very easily.
