Café du Châtelet Bar / Café

Les Halles / Rivoli - 1er / 2eme, Paris –

Coffee and cigarettes is the breakfast of choice at Café du Châtelet, a café and bar catering to a young clientele of students and post-grads.

Early in the day, prepsters and locals enjoy a cup of jeau and people-watching on the heated front patio, while later on groups of friends and students line up at the bar to pass the afternoon over a few pints of beer and whatever’s on the flat-screen TV.

Basic tables and shabby brown booths and chairs give patrons ample slouching space in the back room, though the furniture is cleared away on Fridays and Saturdays when the space is transformed into a small music venue featuring local live acts, DJs, occasional karaoke, and a dance floor packed with tipsy young revelers.

The scene gets a bit rowdier later on, as boisterous jocks and party girls pound shots during the late-night Happy Hour.

Progressively more riotous as the night wears on, Café du Châtelet offers everything from a laid-back after-work cocktail to a drunken dance party – and follows it all up with a hangover-curing breakfast.