Busabout Adventures

Central Paris is quite small: around 9.5km (north to south) by 11km (east to west). Excluding the Bois de Boulogne and the Bois de Vincennes, its total area is 105 sq km. The River Seine flows east–west through the city; the Rive Droite (Right Bank) is north of the river, while the Rive Gauche (Left Bank) is to the south. Paris is divided into 20 arrondissements (districts), which spiral clockwise from the centre. City addresses always include the arrondissement.

Île de la Cité
The site of the first settlement in Paris around the 3rd century BC and later the Roman town of Lutèce, the Île de la Cité remained the centre of royal and ecclesiastical power throughout the Middle Ages. The seven arches of Paris’ oldest bridge, Pont Neuf (Pont Neuf) have linked the Île de la Cité with both banks of the Seine since 1607.

CATHÉDRALE DE NOTRE DAME DE PARIS
The Cathédrale de Notre Dame de Paris (01 42 34 56 10; place du Parvis Notre Dame, 4e; audio guide €5; 8am-6.45pm Mon-Fri, 8am-7.45pm Sat & Sun; Cité) is the true heart of Paris, a French Gothic masterpiece and the focus of Catholic Paris for seven centuries.

Built on a site occupied by earlier churches (and, a millennium before that, a Gallo-Roman temple), it was begun in 1163 and largely completed by the middle of the 14th century. Striking features include the three main portals, whose statues were once brightly coloured to make them more effective as a Biblia pauperum: a ‘Bible of the poor’ to help the illiterate understand the Old Testament stories. Inside look out for the three stunning stained-glass rose windows and the monumental 7800-pipe organ.

You can also climb the 387 steps of the North Tower (01 53 10 07 00; www.monum.fr; rue du Cloître Notre Dame; adult/student & 18-25 yr €7.50/4.80, under 18 yr & 1st Sun Oct-Mar free; 9.30am-7.30pm daily Apr-Jun & Sep; 9am-7.30pm Mon-Fri, 9am-11pm Sat & Sun Jul & Aug; 10am-5.30pm daily Oct-Mar) for breathtaking views across the city. You’ll also see the13-tonne clocher Emmanuel (bell) – no hunchbacks, though, despite what you may have heard from Victor Hugo.

Distances from Paris to every part of metropolitan France are measured from place du Parvis Notre Dame, the square in front of Notre Dame.

STE-CHAPELLE
The most exquisite of Paris’ Gothic monuments, Ste-Chapelle (01 53 40 60 97; www.monum.fr; 4 blvd du Palais, 1er; adult/18-25yr €6.50/4.50, under 18yr & 1st Sun Oct-Mar free, joint ticket with Conciergerie €9.50; 9.30am-6pm Mar-Oct, 9am-5pm Nov-Feb; Cité) is tucked away within the Palais de Justice (Law Courts). Built in under three years, Ste-Chapelle was consecrated in 1248. The chapel was conceived by Louis IX to house his collection of sacred relics, now kept in the treasury of Notre Dame.

CONCIERGERIE
The Conciergerie (01 53 40 60 93; www.monum.fr; 2 blvd du Palais, 1er; adult/aged 18-25 €6.50/4.50, free for under 18yr & 1st Sun of month Oct-Mar only, joint ticket with Ste-Chapelle €9.50; 9.30am-6pm Mar-Oct, 9am-5pm Nov-Feb; Cité), was the main prison during the Reign of Terror. Among the 2700 prisoners held in the cachots (dungeons) before being sent to the guillotine were Marie Antoinette and, as the Revolution began to implode, the Revolutionary radicals Danton and Robespierre.

Right Bank
MUSÉE DU LOUVRE
The Palais du Louvre was constructed as a fortress by Philippe-Auguste in the early 13th century and rebuilt in the mid-16th century. In 1793 it became the Musée du Louvre (Louvre Museum; 01 40 20 53 17; www.louvre.fr; permanent collection €8.50, incl temporary exhibits €13, after 6pm Wed & Fri €6/11, admission free 1st Sun of month; 9am-6pm Mon, Thu, Sat & Sun, 9am-9.45pm Wed & Fri; Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre), one of France’s (if not the world’s) finest museums.

The Louvre’s top attractions are da Vinci’s mischievous Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo, but there’s much more to see. Other highlights include works by Raphael, Botticelli, Delacroix and Titian, the lavish apartments of Napoleon III’s Minister of State, and a glorious collection of Greek and Roman sculpture. Tickets remain valid for the whole day, so take your time – you’ll enjoy it more if you don’t try and pack too much in.

The main entrance in the Cour Napoléon is covered by the 21m-high glass Grande Pyramide. Avoid queues by buying tickets in advance from the ticket machines in the Carrousel du Louvre, by ringing 0 892683 622 or 0 825 346 346, or by booking online at www.louvre.fr. Note that entry to the permanent collection is free for those under 18 years, while those under 26 can enter free after 6pm on Fridays.

JARDIN DES TUILERIES
The 28-hectare Jardin des Tuileries (Tuileries Garden; 01 40 20 90 43; 7am-9pm Apr-Sep, 7am-7.30pm Oct-Mar; Tuileries/Concorde) was laid out in the mid-17th century. The Tuileries soon became the most fashionable spot in Paris for parading about in one’s finery, and now forms part of the Banks of the Seine World Heritage site, listed by Unesco in 1991.

CENTRE POMPIDOU
Since its inauguration in 1977, the Centre National d’Art et de Culture Georges Pompidou (Georges Pompidou National Centre of Art & Culture; 01 44 78 12 33; www.centrepompidou.fr; place Georges Pompidou, 4e; Rambuteau) has amazed and delighted visitors, not just for its outstanding collection of modern art but also for its radical architectural statement. It was among the first buildings to have its ‘insides’ turned out. But it all began to look somewhat démodé by the late 1990s, hence the €85-million renovation, complete with theatre, cinema and dance spaces and a super-stylish restaurant.

Nearby the centre on place Igor Stravinsky is the Fontaine Stravinsky, a bizarre fountain that contains several outlandish and strikingly colourful sculptures by artists Jean Tinguely and Niki de Saint-Phalle, all inspired by the music of the great composer.

ARC DE TRIOMPHE & CHAMPS-ELYSÉES
Commissioned in 1806 by Napoleon, the iconic Arc de Triomphe (Triumphal Arch; 01 55 37 73 77; www.monum.fr; viewing platform adult/18-25yr €8/6, under 18yr & 1st Sun of month Oct-Mar free; 10am-11pm Apr-Sep, 10am-10.30pm Oct-Mar; Charles de Gaulle-Étoile) remained unfinished when he started losing battles and then entire wars, and wasn’t completed until 1836. Since 1920, the body of an Unknown Soldier from WWI has lain beneath the arch; his fate and that of countless others is commemorated by a memorial flame rekindled each evening around 6.30pm. The viewing platform (up 284 steps) affords fine views of the surrounding avenues, many named after Napoleonic generals. Today, the arch stands at the centre of the world’s largest traffic roundabout, place de l’Étoile – officially known as place Charles de Gaulle. Over a dozen boulevards radiate outwards from the square, including av des Champs-Elysées.

PLACE DE LA CONCORDE
Place de la Concorde (Concorde) was laid out between 1755 and 1775. The pink granite obelisk in the middle of the square once stood in the Temple of Ramses at Thebes (today’s Luxor) and was given to France in 1831 by Mohammed Ali, Viceroy of Egypt.

MUSÉE PICASSO
The Musée Picasso (01 42 71 25 21; www.musee-picasso.fr; 5 rue de Thorigny, 3e; adult/18-25yr €6.70/5.20 Wed-Sat & Mon, admission for all €5.20 Sun; 9.30am-6pm Wed-Mon Apr-Sep, 9.30am-5.30pm Wed-Mon Oct-Mar; St-Paul/Chemin Vert), housed in the mid-17th-century Hôtel Salé, contains more than 3500 of the grand maître’s works.

PLACE DE LA BASTILLE
The Bastille, built during the 14th century as a fortified royal residence, is the most famous monument in Paris that no longer exists; the notorious prison was demolished by a Revolutionary mob on 14 July 1789. The place de la Bastille (Bastille), where the prison once stood, is now a busy traffic roundabout.

Left Bank
EIFFEL TOWER & CHAMP DE MARS
The Tour Eiffel (Eiffel Tower; 01 44 11 23 23; www.tour-eiffel.fr; av Gustave Eiffel; lifts to 1st/2nd/3rd platforms €4.20/7.70/11, children 3-11yrs €2.30/4.20/6, stairs to 1st & 2nd platforms €3.80; lifts 9.30am-11pm Sep–mid-Jun, 9am-midnight mid-Jun–Aug; stairs 9.30am-6pm Sep–mid-Jun, 9am-midnight mid-Jun–Aug; Champ de Mars-Tour Eiffel/Bir Hakeim), faced massive opposition from Paris’ artistic and literary elite when it was built for the 1889 World Fair. It was almost torn down in 1909 but was spared because it proved an ideal platform for radio antennas. Today some 5.8 million make their way to the top each year.

The Jardins du Trocadéro (Trocadero Gardens; Trocadéro), whose fountains and statue garden are grandly illuminated at night, are accessible across Pont d’Iéna from the Eiffel Tower.

MUSÉE D’ORSAY
Famously housed in a former train station, the stunning Musée d’Orsay (Orsay Museum; 01 40 49 48 14; www.musee-orsay.fr; 62 rue de Lille, 7e; adult/senior & 18-25yr €7.50/5.50, under 18yr & 1st Sun of month free; 9.30am-6pm Tue, Wed & Fri-Sun, 9.30am-9.45pm Thu; Musée d’Orsay/Solférino) displays France’s national collection of paintings, sculptures and objets d’art produced between the 1840s and 1914, including the fruits of the impressionist, postimpressionist and Art Nouveau movements. Among its prized exhibits are works by Monet, Renoir, Degas, Manet, Gauguin, Cézanne, Van Gogh and Matisse.

CATACOMBES
In 1785, the hygiene problems posed by Paris’ overflowing cemeteries was solved by exhuming the bones and storing them in three disused quarries. One, created in 1810, is now known as the Catacombes (01 43 22 47 63; www.catacombes.paris.fr, in French; 1 av Colonel Henri Roi-Tanguy, 14e; adult/senior & student/14-25yr €5/3.30/2.50, under 14 free; 10am-5pm Tue-Sun; Denfert Rochereau). After descending 20m (130 steps) from street level, visitors follow 1.6km of corridors stacked with the bones of millions of Parisians. Spooky, but super.

PANTHÉON
The domed landmark now known as the Panthéon (01 44 32 18 00; www.monum.fr; place du Panthéon, 5e; adult/18-25yr €7.50/4.80, under 18yr & 1st Sun Oct-Mar free; 10am-6.30pm Apr-Sep, 10am-6.15pm Oct-Mar; Luxembourg) was commissioned as an abbey church in 1750, and completed in 1789. The crypt houses the tombs of French luminaries including Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Victor Hugo, Émile Zola, Jean Moulin and Nobel Prize-winner Marie Curie. Inside the Panthéon is a working model of Foucault’s Pendulum that demonstrates the rotation of the earth.

MUSÉE NATIONAL DU MOYEN AGE
The Musée National du Moyen Age (National Museum of the Middle Ages; 01 53 73 78 16, 01 53 73 78 00; www.musee-moyenage.fr; Thermes & Hôtel de Cluny, 6 place Paul Painlevé, 5e; adult/senior, student & 18-25yr €6.50/4.50, under 18yr & 1st Sun of month free; 9.15am-5.45pm Wed-Mon; Cluny-La Sorbonne/St-Michel) is housed in two structures: the frigidarium (cooling room) and Gallo-Roman baths dating from AD 200, and the late-15th-century Hôtel de Cluny, considered the finest example of medieval civil architecture in Paris. Displays include statuary, illuminated manuscripts and objects made of gold, ivory and enamel.

JARDIN DU LUXEMBOURG
In fine weather, Parisians flock to the formal terraces of the Jardin du Luxembourg (Luxembourg Garden; 7am-9.30pm Apr-Oct, 8am-sunset Mar-Nov; Luxembourg) to read, relax and sunbathe.

MUSÉE RODIN
The Musée Rodin (Rodin Museum; 01 44 18 61 10; www.musee-rodin.fr; 77 rue de Varenne, 7e; adult/senior & 18-25yr €7/5, under 18 free & 1st Sun of month free, garden only €1; 9.30am-5.45pm Tue-Sun Apr-Sep, 9.30am-4.45pm Tue-Sun Oct-Mar; Varenne) is both a sublime museum (containing casts of some of Rodin’s most celebrated works, including The Thinker and The Kiss) and a lovely garden full of sculptures and shady trees.

HÔTEL DES INVALIDES
The Hôtel des Invalides (blvd des Ivalides; Varenne/La Tour Maubourg) was built in the 1670s by Louis XIV to provide housing for 4000 disabled war veterans. On 14 July 1789, a mob forced its way into the building and, after fierce fighting, seized 28,000 rifles before heading on to the prison at Bastille.

Other Districts
CIMETIÈRE DU PÈRE LACHAISE
The world’s most visited graveyard, Cimetière du Père Lachaise (01 55 25 82 10; admission free; 8am-6pm Mon-Fri, 8.30am-6pm Sat, 9am-6pm Sun mid-Mar–early Nov; 8am-5.30pm Mon-Fri, 8.30am-5.30pm Sat, 9am-5.30pm Sun early Nov–mid-Mar; Philippe Auguste/Gambetta/Père Lachaise) opened its one-way doors in 1804. Among the 800,000 people buried here are Chopin, Molière, Balzac, Proust, Gertrude Stein, Colette, Pissarro, Modigliani, Sarah Bernhardt, Delacroix, Edith Piaf and even the 12th-century lovers, Abélard and Héloïse. The graves of Oscar Wilde (Division 89) and Jim Morrison (Division 6) are perennially popular. Free maps are available from the conservation office (16 rue du Repos, 20e).

MONTMARTRE & PIGALLE
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries bohemian Montmartre attracted numerous writers and artists, including Picasso, who lived at the studio called Bateau Lavoir (11bis Émile Goudeau) from 1908 to 1912. Montmartre retains an upbeat ambience that all the tourists in the world couldn’t spoil.

A few blocks southwest of Montmartre is neon-drenched Pigalle 9e and 18e, a red-light district that boasts plenty of trendy nightspots, clubs and cabarets (which include the original Moulin Rouge).

BASILIQUE DU SACRÉ CŒUR
The Basilique du Sacré Cœur (Basilica of the Sacred Heart; 01 53 41 89 00; www.sacre-coeur-montmartre.com; place du Parvis du Sacré Cœur, 18e; 6am-11pm; Anvers), perched at the top of the Butte de Montmartre (Montmartre Hill), was built in 1870–71. Some 234 spiralling steps lead to the spectacular panorama from the basilica’s dome (admission €5; 9am-7pm Apr-Sep, 9am-6pm Oct-Mar).

Paris has a thriving club scene, and there are some mighty fine DJs based here, but the scene moves fast so check local listings for the latest tips.

Le Batofar (01 56 29 10 33; www.batofar.net, in French; opposite 11 quai François Mauriac, 13e; admission free-€15; 9pm-midnight Mon & Tue, 9pm or 10pm-4 or 6am Wed-Sun; Quai de la Gare/Bibliothèque) A long-standing club housed inside an old tugboat. Expect electronica and techno for the most part, as well as some big-name DJs.

Rex Club (01 42 36 10 96; 5 blvd Poissonnière, 2e; admission €8-13; 11.30pm-6am Wed-Sat; Bonne Nouvelle) The Rex reigns supreme in the house and techno scene and regularly hosts local and international DJs.
Triptyque (01 40 28 05 55; www.letryptique.com; 142 rue Montmartre, 2e; admission €3-10; 9pm-2am Sun-Wed, 9pm-5am Thu-Sat; Grand Boule¬vards) A vast club split over three underground rooms, with a play list spanning electro, hip-hop, jazz and funk.

Emergency
SOS Helpline (in English  01 46 21 46 46)
SOS Médecins (24hr house calls 01 47 07 77 77, 08 20 33 24 24)
Urgences Médicales de Paris (Paris Medical Emergencies; 24hr house calls 01 53 94 94 94, 01 48 28 40 40)

Internet Access
There are cybercafés dotted all over Paris.
Cyber Cube (www.cybercube.fr; 9 rue d’Odessa, 14e; per min €0.15, per 5/10hr €30/40; 10am-10pm; Montparnasse Bienvenüe)

Web 46 (46 rue du Roi de Sicile, 4e; per 15/30/60min €2.50/4/7, 5hr €29; 10am-midnight Mon-Fri, 10am-9pm Sat, noon-midnight Sun; St-Paul)

XS Arena Luxembourg (17 rue Soufflot, 5e; per 1/2/3/4/5hr €3/6/8/10/11; 24hr; Luxembourg) Central branch of this internet café chain.

XS Arena Les Halles ( 31 rue Sébastopol, 1er; Châtelet des Halles; 24hr) Near the Forum des Halles.

Left Luggage
All the train stations have left-luggage offices or lockers. Most are closed from about 11.15pm to about 6.30am.

Money
Post offices with a Banque Postale offer the best exchange rates, and accept banknotes in various currencies as well as travellers cheques issued by Amex or Visa. Bureaux de change in Paris are usually faster, open longer and give better rates than the commercial banks.

Post
The main post office (01 40 28 76 00; 52 rue du Louvre, 1er; 24hr; Sentier/Les Halles) opens round the clock for mail. Other services, including currency exchange, are available during regular opening hours.

Tourist Information
Office de Tourisme et de Congrès de Paris (Paris Convention & Visitors Bureau;08 92 68 30 00; www.parisinfo.com; 25-27 rue des Pyramides, 1er; 9am-7.30pm Jun-Oct, 10am-7pm Mon-Sat & 11am-7pm Sun Nov-May; Pyramides) is 500m northwest of the Louvre.

Paris likes to think of itself as the culinary capital of France, and the city has a plethora of classically French cafés, bistros and brasseries.

But modern-day Paris is a gastronomic melting-pot, and you’ll find some of the city’s best food at tiny restaurants serving traditional Vietnamese, Caribbean and North African cuisine.

Louvre & Les Halles
Joe Allen (01 42 36 70 13; 30 rue Pierre Lescot, 1er; starters €7-9.80, mains €12.90-16.50, lunch menu €12.90, dinner menus €18 & €22.50; noon-1am; Étienne Marcel) A US-style favourite for some 35 years, Joe Allen is little bit of New York in Paris.

Tana (01 42 33 53 64; 36 rue Tiquetonne, 2e; starters €7-12.50, mains €9-20; dinner to 11.30pm; Étienne Marcel) In a street where each restaurant is more original than the next, Tana takes the tart. The mixed hors d’oeuvre for two and the homok pla (fish steamed in banana leaf) are both excellent.

L’Arbre à Cannelle (01 45 08 55 87; 57 passage des Panoramas, 2e; dishes €6.50-12; 11.30am-6.30pm Mon-Sat; Grands Boulevards) The ‘Cinnamon Tree’ is a lovely tearoom with original 19th-century décor, tartes salées (savoury pies; €6.50 to €7), salads (€6.50 to €9.50) and great plats du jour (€10).

SELF-CATERING
Useful supermarkets around here include Franprix Les Halles (35 rue Berger, 1er; 8.30am-7.50pm Mon-Sat; Châtelet les Halles/Louvre-Rivoli) and Ed l’Épicier (80 rue de Rivoli, 4e; Hôtel de Ville).

Marais & Bastille
The Marais is one of Paris’ premier neighbourhoods for eating out. For quick eats, check out the noodle shops along rue Au Maire, 3e (take the metro to Arts et Métiers) or the falafel and shwarma (kebabs) restaurants dotted along rue des Rosiers, 4e (metro St-Paul).

L’Encrier (01 44 68 08 16; 55 rue Traversière, 12e; starters €5-10, mains €9-16.50, menus €13 lunch & dinner €17-21; lunch Mon-Fri, dinner Mon-Sat; Ledru Rollin/Gare de Lyon) There’s always a relaxed atmosphere at the ‘Inkwell’. Good-value set menus, an open kitchen and a large picture window make this a winner.

Le Trumilou (01 42 77 63 98; 84 quai de l’Hôtel de Ville, 4e; starters €4-12, mains €13-21; menus €17.50 & €19; Hôtel de Ville) This no-frills bistro is a Parisian institution; if you’re looking for authentic French food at reasonable prices, you won’t do better.

Robert et Louise (01 42 78 55 89; 64 rue Vieille du Temple, 3e; starters €5-12, mains €13-18, lunch menu €12; lunch & dinner to 10pm Tue-Sat; St-Sébastien Froissart) This ‘country inn’ offers delightful and inexpensive French cuisine, including a wonderful côte de bœuf (side of beef) for €39.

Piccolo Teatro (01 42 72 17 79; 6 rue des Écouffes, 4e; €3.80-7.50, mains €8.90-11.70, lunch menus €8.90-14.70, dinner menus €15.10 & €21.50; lunch & dinner till 11.30pm; St-Paul) This intimate restaurant serves excellent vegetarian food in a cosy stone-walled dining room.

Paris Hanoi (01 47 00 47 59; 74 rue de Charonne, 11e; starters €3.10-7.50, mains €6.60-10; lunch Mon-Sat, dinner to 10.30pm daily; Charonne) This upbeat restaurant is an excellent place to come for Vietnamese pho (soup noodles) and shrimp noodles.

SELF-CATERING
There are food shops and delicatessens along rue St-Antoine. Useful supermarkets:
Franprix Marais (135 rue St-Antoine, 4e; 9am-8.30pm Mon-Sat; St-Paul)
Franprix Hôtel de Ville (87 rue de la Verrerie, 4e; 9am-9pm Mon-Sat; Hôtel de Ville)
Monoprix (71 rue St-Antoine, 4e; 9am-9pm Mon-Sat; St-Paul)

Latin Quarter & Jardin Des Plantes
Rue Mouffetard, 5e (take the metro to Place Monge or Censier Daubenton) and the surrounding streets are filled with good, cheap restaurants, sandwich shops and crêpe stalls, but whatever you so, avoid the area around rue de la Huchette (locally known as ‘Bacteria Alley’).

Les Cinq Saveurs d’Ananda (01 43 29 58 54; 72 rue du Cardinal Lemoine, 5e; soups & starters €5.20-9, mains €9.20-14.90; lunch & dinner to 10.30pm Tue-Sun; Cardinal Lemoine) Set back from place de la Contrescarpe, this semi-vegetarian restaurant is popular among health foodies. All ingredients are farm-fresh and 100% organic.

Le Foyer du Vietnam (01 45 35 32 54; 80 rue Monge, 5e; starters €3.10-6, mains €6-8.50, menus €8.20 & €12.20; lunch & dinner to 10pm Mon-Sat; Place Monge) A favourite meeting spot for the capital’s Vietnamese community, Le Foyer serves simple meals such as ‘Saigon’ or ‘Hanoi’ soup (noodles, soya beans and pork flavoured with lemon grass, coriander and chives).

Le Petit Pontoise (01 43 29 25 20; 9 rue de Pontoise, 5e; starters €8-13.50, mains €15-25; lunch & dinner to 10.30pm; Maubert Mutualité) This busy brasserie offers a blackboard menu of seasonal delights, from foie gras with figs (€12) to poulet fermier avec pommes purée (roasted farm chicken with mashed potato; €13).

Breakfast in America (01 43 54 50 28; 17 rue des Écoles, 5e; meals €6.95-9.50; 8.30am-11pm; Cardinal Lemoine) This American-style diner, complete with red banquettes and Formica surfaces, serves all-day breakfast (from €6.95) with free coffee refills, plus burgers, chicken wings and fish and chips (€7.50 to €8.95).

SELF-CATERING
Place Maubert, 5e, becomes a lively food market on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday mornings. Useful supermarkets:
Ed l’Épicier (37 rue Lacépède, 5e; 9am-1pm & 3-7.30pm Mon-Fri, 9am-7.30pm Sat; Place Monge)
Franprix (82 rue Mouffetard, 5e; 8.30am-8.50pm Mon-Sat; Censier Daubenton/Place Monge)

Gare du Nord, Gare de l’Est & République
These areas offer all types of food, including Indian and Pakistani, which can be elusive elsewhere in Paris. There’s a cluster of traditional bistros around the Gare du Nord.

La Marine (01 42 39 69 81; 55bis quai de Valmy, 10e; starters €7.50-12, mains €14.10-18.80, lunch menu €12; lunch & dinner to 11.30pm Mon-Sat; République) This airy bistro overlooking the Canal St-Martin is a favourite, especially in the warmer months, for cheap traditional French cuisine.

Passage Brady, off Blvd de Strasbourg, is a derelict covered arcade with dozens of cheap Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi cafés offering excellent-value lunches (meat curry, rice and salad €5 to €7; chicken or lamb biryani €8 to €12; thalis €12). Among the best:
Passage de Pondicherry (01 53 32 63 10; 84 passage Brady; Château d’Eau)
Pooja (01 48 24 00 83; 91 passage Brady; Château d’Eau)

SELF-CATERING
Rue du Faubourg St-Denis, 10e (take the metro to Strasbourg St-Denis or Château d’Eau) is one of the cheapest places in Paris to buy food, especially fruit and vegetables. Many of the food shops, including the fromagerie at No 54, are open Tuesday to Saturday and until noon on Sunday.

Convenient supermarkets:
Franprix Faubourg St-Denis (7-9 rue des Petites Écuries, 10e; Strasbourg St-Denis/Château d’Eau)
Franprix Magenta (57 blvd de Magenta, 10e; Gare de l’Est)

Montparnasse
Montparnasse offers all types of cuisine but especially traditional crêperies.

Dix Vins (01 43 20 91 77; 57 rue Falguière, 15e; lunch menu €20, dinner menu €24; lunch & dinner to 11pm Mon-Fri; Pasteur) This tiny little restaurant is so popular you will probably have to wait at the bar even if you’ve booked. Excellent value, good service and stylish décor.

La Mascotte (01 46 06 28 15; 52 rue des Abbesses, 18e; starters €6.50-12, mains €17-23, lunch menu €17.50, dinner menu €29; lunch & dinner to 11.30pm Tue-Sat; Abbesses) The ‘Mascot’ is much frequented by regulars who can’t get enough of its seafood and regional cuisine. Plats du jour are between €14 and €16.

SELF-CATERING
Towards place Pigalle there are lots of grocery stores, many open till late; try the side streets off blvd de Clichy. Rue des Martyr, 9e is lined with food shops.

Montmartre & Pigalle
Montmartre’s restaurants vary widely in quality, so choose carefully.

La Maison Rose (01 42 57 66 75; 2 rue de l’Abreuvoir, 18e; starters €7.80-13, mains €14.50-16.50, menu €16.50; lunch & dinner to 11pm daily Mar-Oct; lunch Thu-Mon, dinner to 9pm Mon & Thu-Sat Nov-Feb; Lamarck Caulaincourt) The tiny ‘Pink House’, just north of place du Tertre, is the quintessential intimate Montmartre bistro.

For the lowdown on Paris after dark, pick up Pariscope (€0.40) or Officiel des Spectacles (€0.35), both published on Wednesday. Zurban (www.zurban.com, in French; €1) also published on Wednesday, offers a fresher look at entertainment in the capital.

You can buy tickets for cultural events at ticket outlets, including Fnac (08 92 68 36 22; www.fnac.com) and Virgin Megastore (www.virginmega.fr) branches.

Bars
MARAIS & BASTILLE
Andy Wahloo (01 42 71 20 38; 69 rue des Gravilliers, 3e; noon-2am; Arts et Métiers) Casablanca meets candy-store in this trendy, multicoloured cocktail lounge. During happy hour (5pm to 8pm) a cocktail/beer is €5/3 – after that it doubles.

Café des Phares (01 42 72 04 70; 7 place Bastille, 4e; 7am-3am Sun-Thu, 7am-4am Fri & Sat; Bastille) If you like some Camus with your coffee, head for the city’s original philocafé. Debates take place at 11am on Sundays.

Le Pick Clops (01 40 29 02 18; 16 rue Vieille du Temple, 4e; 7.30am-2am; Hôtel de Ville/St-Paul) This retro café-bar attracts a friendly flow of locals and passers-by, and makes a great spot for morning coffee or that last nightcap.

LATIN QUARTER & JARDIN DES PLANTES
Le Piano Vache (01 46 33 75 03; 8 rue Laplace, 5e; noon-2am Mon-Fri, 9pm-2am Sat & Sun; Maubert Mutualité) ‘The Mean Piano’ is a grungy underground venue with regular bands and DJs playing mainly rock, reggae and pop.

Le Vieux Chêne (01 43 37 71 51; 69 rue Mouffetard, 5e; 4pm-2am Sun-Thu, 4pm-5am Fri & Sat; Place Monge) ‘The Old Oak’ is supposedly the oldest bar in Paris, and it’s still popular with students and jazz fans. Happy hour lasts till 9pm, with half pints for only €2.50 (they’re usually €3.50).

ST-GERMAIN, ODÉON & LUXEMBOURG
Café de Flore (01 45 48 55 26; 172 blvd St-Germain, 6e; 7.30am-1.30am; St-Germain des Prés) The Flore is an Art Deco café where the red upholstered benches, mirrors and marble walls haven’t changed since Sartre, de Beauvoir and Camus used to hang out here.

Les Deux Magots (01 45 48 55 25; 170 blvd St-Germain, 6e; 7am-1am; St-Germain des Prés) This erstwhile literary haunt was a favourite of Sartre, Hemingway, Picasso and André Breton. Everyone has to sit on the terrace at least once for a coffee (€4), beer (€5.50) or the famous hot chocolate served in porcelain jugs (€6).

Le 10 (01 43 26 66 83; 10 rue de l’Odéon, 6e; 5.30pm-2am; Odéon) A popular cellar pub with tobacco-tinged posters, an eclectic jukebox and sangria served by the jug (€3.30 per person). Happy hour is from 6pm to 9pm.

MONTMARTRE & PIGALLE
La Fourmi (01 42 64 70 35; 74 rue des Martyr, 18e; 8am-2am Mon-Thu, 10am-4am Fri-Sun; Pigalle) A perennial Pigalle favourite, the ‘Ant’ buzzes all day and night; it’s hip without being overly pretentious.

Live Music
Le Bataclan (01 43 14 00 30; 50 blvd Voltaire, 11e; admission €15-50; box office 3-7pm Mon-Sat; Oberkampf/St-Ambroise) Built in 1864, this small concert hall is one of Paris’ most eclectic venues, hosting rock, dance, comedy and techno acts from France and further afield.

La Cigale (01 49 25 89 99; 120 blvd de Rochechouart, 18e; admission €22-45; box office noon-7pm Mon-Fri; Anvers/Pigalle) An enormous old music hall seating up to 2000 people, with a regular programme of gigs and international artists.

L’Élysée Montmartre (01 55 07 16 00; www.elyseemontmartre.com; 72 blvd de Rochechouart, 18e; cover €10-35; Anvers) A huge old music hall with an impressive domed roof, this is one of the better venues in Paris for one-off rock and indie concerts. There are club nights and weekend DJs.