Thursday, March 2, 2023
HomeParis TravelRive Gauche Jazz Golf equipment ⋆ Secrets and techniques of Paris

Rive Gauche Jazz Golf equipment ⋆ Secrets and techniques of Paris


Paris has been a jazz haven because the Nineteen Thirties, second solely to New York Metropolis. Nearly a century later, town remains to be recognized for its jazz golf equipment, the place on any given evening in Paris you’ll be able to simply discover a minimum of a half dozen dwell live shows at totally different venues all through town. The Left Financial institution is especially fascinating for the number of golf equipment and programming, from tiny cellars and comfy cocktail bars to dinner live shows and jam periods the place everybody’s dancing.

You don’t need to be a fan of jazz music to benefit from the power and ambiance of the Paris jazz scene. Whereas there are live shows in massive venues that includes worldwide stars, most of the smaller golf equipment are accessible – and reasonably priced – for anybody curious sufficient to step inside. Right here’s a primer on one of the best ones on the Left Financial institution that will help you select.

Historic Cellar Golf equipment

Caveau de la Huchette entrance

Caveau de la Huchette

Caveau de la Huchette
5, rue de la Huchette, 5th
Metro St-Michel or Cluny-Sorbonne
Open nightly from 9pm till 2:30am (till 4am on Friday, Saturday, and holidays).
Live shows start at 9:30pm.
No reservations.
Entry €14 (€16 on Friday, Saturday and holidays); €10 for college kids beneath 25 with pupil ID.
Drinks can be found beneath €10 (no requirement to buy drinks). Coat examine out there.

Caveau de la Huchette

Based on legend, the Knights of Templar met on this cellar within the 16th century, adopted the Free Masons within the 18th century. It’s been a jazz hotspot since 1946, the place all the nice jazz legends performed, from Sidney Bechet to Lionel Hampton. At this time it hosts jazz, swing, and blues live shows, with jam periods open to all musicians on Monday nights. This is among the few jazz venues the place you’ll be able to dance — and lots of do! In case you desire to take a seat and watch, ensure to get there as quickly because the doorways open at 9pm to get one of many seats alongside the benches surrounding the dance flooring, or up on the mezzanine tables for one of the best views. It’s very informal, with folks chatting amongst themselves, and coming and going to the bar upstairs, in the course of the live shows.

Caveau de la Huchette

Chez Georges

Chez Georges
11 Rue des Canettes, 6thMetro Odéon
Bar open every day 6pm-2am (till 1am Sunday-Monday); live shows Tuesdays 8pm-11pm.
Live performance tickets €12. Reservations on-line extremely really helpful.
Drinks and cheese/meat platters out there for €4-€10.

Chez Georges
Upstairs at Chez Georges

Opened by Georges Abbe and his spouse Minouche in 1952, this standard bar is now run by their youngsters, and has barely modified at everywhere in the previous 25 years, regardless of how fashionable the neighborhood has turn into. Just like the Caveau de la Huchette, there’s no costume code right here. The bottom flooring bar is open to anybody if you could find a nook to cram into. The costs are greater than affordable, with many wines and their home Sangria out there at €5/glass or beneath €25/bottle. The cellar is barely for individuals who have bought tickets to the live shows (when full, you’ll see a “soirée privé” signal on the steps).

Chez Georges
Downstairs Chez Georges

They host Swing and Jazz Manouche (aka Gypsy jazz)  live shows each Tuesday evening, with a special group every time. You’ll wish to get there at 7:45pm to be sure you get a great place close to the entrance. There’s a devoted bar and coat examine downstairs; after getting your desk your order might be taken and dropped at you. That is handy as a result of it’s such a small venue (about 40 spots on chairs, stools and benches) that when you’re seated and the music begins, it’s actually troublesome to stroll round. There are three units from 8pm-11pm, with breaks in between so everybody can stretch their legs and chat (nobody talks whereas the musicians are taking part in). A fantastic venue if you wish to expertise an intimate ambiance up shut and private with the musicians and fellow music lovers.

Lodge Bar Live shows

L'Hotel entrance

Wilde’s Lounge

Wilde’s Lounge at L’Lodge
13 rue des Beaux-Arts, 6th
Metro St-Germain-des-Prés
Bar open every day from 5pm-1am. Live shows Thursdays from 7:30pm-11pm.
Free entry, no reservations. Cocktails from €25.

There are free jazz live shows within the bar of the posh boutique lodge, L’Lodge, the place the 19th-century author Oscar Wilde famously died. These live shows are a part of the neighborhood’s Jeudi des Beaux Arts occasion to advertise the artwork galleries alongside the Rue des Beaux Arts on Thursday nights (normally a well-liked night for vernissages, or present openings).

Wilde's Lounge Bar
Wilde’s Lounge Bar

Wilde’s Lounge, which has expanded into the house that used to accommodate the lodge’s Michelin-starred restaurant (now closed), is one in every of my favourite cocktail bars for its plush, boudoir-style décor stuffed with marble and fringed velvet, good for a date. You’ll wish to get there by 7:15pm if you wish to you should definitely get a desk earlier than the music begins at 7:45pm (probably earlier in excessive vacationer season). Given the steep value of the fabulous cocktails  — and the rooms, do you have to be fortunate sufficient to remain right here — the group tends to be a bit higher dressed than on the venues talked about above. The musicians, normally a duo or trio with piano and vocalist, are positioned on the far finish of the lounge. In case you can’t get a desk, or desire to have the ability to chat extra freely along with your companion(s), seize one of many stools or couch throughout from the bar, which is in a smaller room connecting the lounge to the lodge’s foyer.

Café Laurent

Café Laurent at Hôtel D’Aubusson
33 Rue Dauphine, 6th
Metro Odéon
Bar open every day 4:30pm till midnight; live shows Monday by means of Saturday from 8:30pm-11pm (extra solo periods on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 6:30pm-7:45pm).
Free entry, no reservations. Cocktails from €19, different drinks (together with teas) from €10. Bar snacks from €16.

Café Laurent facade

Based on the lodge’s historical past, the Café Laurent has been open because the late 17th-century (about the identical because the close by Procope), and its cellar turned one of many neighborhood’s hottest jazz golf equipment — beneath the identify Le Tabou — again in 1947. At this time the jazz live shows happen within the elegant ground-level lounge bar of the Café Laurent, with home windows overlooking the busy Rue Dauphine. This can be one of many best jazz venues to go to with out a lot dedication or advance planning, since entry is free and there are live shows each evening however Sunday. This system is on their web site and posted within the lodge foyer if you wish to try who’s taking part in (it’ll usually be pianist Christian Brenner, the membership’s program director, together with a vocalist, bassist and saxophonist).

Café Laurent concert
Throughout the soloist session Thursday evening

There are cozy upholstered chairs and low tables for friends across the piano, in addition to seating on the lengthy bar. There’s a full drinks menu, in addition to tapenade spreads and sweets like macarons should you’re hungry. There are two units within the evenings at 8:30pm and 9:45pm, and two units for the soloists on Wednesday and Thursday at 6:30pm and seven:15pm. If you would like to have the ability to chat, there’s one other cozy lounge with an enormous hearth on the opposite facet of the bar, and an inside courtyard with just a few tables for some recent air.

Café Laurent bar
The bar and second lounge space

Dinner Live performance Golf equipment

Le Barbizon

Le Barbizon
141 Rue de Tolbiac, 13th
Metro Tolbiac or Olympiade
Bar open 5pm-2am Tuesday – Saturday. Restaurant/live shows 8pm-10pm (though they usually begin later and go longer).
Tickets €10-€15 bought upfront, €12-€17 on the door. Reservations extremely really helpful.

Le Barbizon entrance

The most effective-kept secrets and techniques (up to now), this handle was as soon as residence to one of many oldest cinemas in Paris, relationship again to 1911. It closed in 1983 and was occupied by artist squatters till it was lastly demolished in 2011 and changed with public housing. Le Barbizon restaurant-bar-club opened at road degree simply after the ultimate pandemic restrictions have been lifted in 2021. They host jazz, blues, funk, and world music live shows on a small stage overlooking a eating room and bar.

Le Barbizon club
The stage is barely raised so everybody can see the musicians

They take nice satisfaction of their home made meals, so whenever you guide your ticket (at all times cheaper upfront than on the door), you’ve got the choice to order a desk. The menu contains connoisseur burgers for €24, charcuterie or cheese platters (€15-€20), and salads. There’s a youngsters’s menu at €15, and “formules” with drinks included from €35 (solo)-€45 (duo). In case you simply wish to drink or snack, you’re seated or standing on the bar, relying on house). Cocktails are €12, different drinks from €4.50 and up.

Le Barbizon bar
A view of the bar and kitchen at Le Barbizon

The acts taking part in right here come from Paris and everywhere in the world, with an excellent number of types. There are additionally just a few regulars, together with New Orleans native Jeff Boudreaux’s “Mumbo Gumbo Brass Band”. Wednesday nights are jam periods honoring legendary musicians; tickets are €10 for watching (and a €7 price added to any drinks to pay the musicians), or free should you’re taking part. After the live shows, the musicians normally be a part of the group on the bar to hang around. There’s no dancing, however the ambiance is pleasant and informal; no costume code.

Petit Journal Saint Michel

Petit Journal St-Michel
71 Boulevard Saint-Michel, 5th
RER Luxembourg or Metro Cluny-Sorbonne
Restaurant open from 7:30pm Tuesday-Saturday. Live shows from 9pm.
Entrance €25 (together with first drink) or dinner-concert for €70-€75 (contains entrance, meals, and repair, however not drinks). Drinks €8-€15. Bar snacks €25-€32.
Reservations by way of on-line type or by calling 01 43 26 28 59.

Going sturdy since 1971, the Petit Journal is a restaurant and membership recognized for New Orleans Jazz and swing acts, corresponding to regulars Les Dixieland Seniors. The ambiance is enjoyable and pleasant, no costume code anticipated. They’ve added a small space to bop, though most individuals are seated for dinner. The room is lengthy and slim, with the musicians on the far finish, so that you’ll wish to resolve should you’d slightly sit nearer for an excellent view (however know that will probably be tougher to listen to anybody at your desk) or additional away so you’ll be able to extra simply chat (however threat not seeing a lot).

When reserving (really helpful should you’re greater than two folks), you’ll must both name or fill out their on-line reservation for with the date, variety of folks, and whether or not you’re consuming or simply consuming, and wait for his or her affirmation. Regardless of these old style hurdles, they’ve a loyal and devoted following of regulars from world wide.

In case you plan on consuming, you should definitely examine the menu, which is sort of restricted (foremost dish selections are duck confit, rump steak, veal kidneys, or roast cod). Bar snacks like cheese platters or plate of snails begin at €25. I haven’t eaten there (no vegan choices), and the critiques appear to advise folks to stay to the music and the drinks.

Different Left Financial institution Venues

La Rhumerie
166, boulevard Saint-Germain, 6th
MetroMabillon or St-Germain-des-PrésBar-restaurant open every day 9am-2:30am (till 12:30am Solar-Mon, till 1:30am Tues-Wed)
Live shows Sundays and Mondays 8:30pm-10:30pm
Free entry,  €1 added to drink costs throughout live shows.
This historic neighborhood establishment was first opened in 1932 by a rum importer. At this time they’ve jazz live shows twice each week in a festive, laid-back ambiance overlooking the busy Boulevard St-Germain. After all you’ll wish to strive the rum cocktails, and if hungry, the Creole and West Indies snacks from €5-€15.

Le Rhumerie jazz poster

Le Bal Blomet
33 rue Blomet, 15th
Metro Sèvres-Lecourbe or Volontaires
Bar-restaurant open from 7pm, live shows Wednesday by means of Friday from 8pm.
Most tickets €22-€25. Reserve your spot on-line or at FNAC. Full bar and light-weight meals out there.
This self-described cabaret hosts all types of music and performances, however primarily jazz, in a spacious live performance venue that seats 250 folks, one of many largest of its form on the Left Financial institution. The unique jazz membership right here first opened in 1924; the one you see right this moment was utterly rebuilt in 2017 after altering fingers for a number of a long time.

Jazz Sources

ParisJazzClub.internet is a superb place to start out for details about the place to get pleasure from jazz in Paris. It’s in French and English, and contains this system for a lot of the venues it lists. In addition they provide a membership card for €40/12 months that provides you entry into seven free live shows every month, in addition to reductions and different advantages.

L’Officiel des Spectacles, on-line or offline, can be an excellent useful resource to seek out all the jazz live performance itemizing in Paris, such because the Châtelet Fait son Jazz jazz pageant on the Théâtre du Châtelet March 5-12.

Notice: Café Universel on Rue St Jacques and Jazz Café Montparnasse are completely closed.

Jazz Café Montparnasse
Jazz Café Montparnasse in February 2023



Supply hyperlink

RELATED ARTICLES

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Most Popular

Recent Comments