I was a little worried everything would be closed in this neighborhood at this time of night, but here I am, in a brightly-lit place, an animated group talking and laughing at the other end of the room, and Tom Jones singing "My, my, my Delilah" on the Nostalgie radio station. Violent song. ![]() I'm at a table big enough for four. The Schweppes ashtray is yellow and pink, as if it were strawberry-banana flavored. The sugar cubes for my espresso came in a packet with a picture of a red pelican on it. The packet is a veritable Rosettea Stone with its red lettering: Roode Pelikaan/Pelican Rouge, Koffie/Cafe, and Suiker/Sucre/Sugar/Zucker. The chairs here are wood with wicker seats. The design on the tabletop is a crisscross of little brown scorch spots surrounded by faux woodgrain swirls. A short strand of hyperactive yellow Christmas lights winds across the wall behind the bar. In the middle of the ceiling a simple fan turns semi-slowly, like the propeller of a small plane that is still in the process of warming up. |
![]() Metro: Porte d'Italie Sugar: packet of sugar cubes Copyright © 2002 David Sadegh. Please send your questions or comments to: david@undergroundparis.com |