Le Brébant

While this might look like your typical Parisian café, with the sprawling terrace and the neglectful waitstaff, it's not. Why? Two simple reasons: half off happy hour from 6 till 9 pm and the best mojitos in Paris. This is one of the rare Parisian bars that can do cocktails. I remember the first time I went to a bar in Paris, on my first visit here a few years ago, at a trendy place on the Marché Saint-Honoré. This was before I knew it was better to just have wine; I was used to girly happy hours with amaretto sours and red-yellow-green shots. So imagine my dismay when I order a double-digit daiqueri, and get served a barely drinkable toxic mess in a martini glass. I learned my lesson and have never ordered cocktails since - except at Le Brébant. Both the normal mojito and the mojito "royal" (champagne instead of rum) are delicious; all the girly cocktails are exactly as we have them back in the states *if not better*, and the beer choices are just fine for the guys. Plus until 9 the cocktails are half off, so in the neighborhood of 4€! Need I say more?!

Le Brébant
32, Blvd Poissonnière
75009 Paris
01 47 70 01 02

Also I stopped by Zen Zoo again (ever since I discovered it I can't stay away!), and this time I arrived around dinner time. I decided to go for one of the soup specials, which looked delicious, and for 12€ I wasn't disappointed:
Big wagamama-type beef, vegetable & noodle soup (but better, of course); sautéed tofu and vegetables; a hollowed out cucumber filled with minced pork and spices. I have now determined that my ideal apartment would overlook the Square Louvois, not only because it's beautiful but also because of its close proximity to Zen Zoo ;)

tags: grub