Ok, the folks of Paris are gonna be miffed at me for outing this joint, but I'm gonna do it anyway…read more Ok, tucked away in a corner of Paris uncorrupted by huge waves of camera-swinging, sidewalk-blocking, standing-in-the-middle-of-the-street-pointing tourists is quartier Mouffetard. Hmmm, I guess I've ruined that now.
Anyway, tucked up at the top of the hill of this cool little niche in the city is home to one of the best dive bars I've been to outside of the States, Le Requin Chagrin (don't try to make any sense of the name). This is a great neighborhood-y joint, very local and cool, as in unpretentious, so check all attitudes at the door -- only the bartenders are allowed the right (just kidding). Soak up the atmosphere, soak up some beer and make friends with whomever is standing next to you.
And when the joint finally closes, or when you've had enough to drink, head downhill to look for a cab (quietly mind you, people do live here you know). But before you go home, the chicken rotisserie guys should be starting their day (yep _that_ early in the morning). Try to talk one of 'em into selling you a freshly spit-roasted chicken and sit at a nearby fountain (there's always one in Paris) and split it with your friends or other drunk strangers who are headed home too.
