Villette-Bar — Restaurant in Paris

It was day two in Paris on my plan to join the French Foreign Legion when I booked into Generator hostel at Place du Colonel Fabien . Upon trying to pay by card I found my bank account inexplicably locked, leaving me to wander Paris with a handful of cash and little food.

Stage one set: An Irish artist with anxiety sets his priority during disaster, to find the most inexpensive bar possible, stay there, and keep going back because the next bar he enters might have a cobra hidden under the doormat. I found a quiet enough place down the road from generator hostel, named Le Villette Bar. Inside there were a number of clientele and bar staff who greeted me warmly upon entering. The barman didn't speak English but we made articulated gestures to guess what we were saying. Eventually we figured out what beer was.

It was nice, low cost and they gave me a side dish of olives and nuts with each drink. I went in there a few times more and I have to say when traveling on a low budget a place like this is a lifesaver. I had a few drinks and the total came to 10 euro. Three drinks and two helpings of olives and nuts for 10 euro in Paris is not so bad. For the most part I kept to myself, and soaked in the atmosphere by drawing pictures to match my mood.

On my last visit, when it came time to leave, the barman called me back inside and offered a free shot of "something" on the house, as tradition, he said. All in all not bad service to a foreigner who merely remained mute at the bar during his stay. Oh, and a man offered me skittles ... or smarties. "Could be M&Ms," he said.

It was a pity Generator hostel raised their prices forcing me to move, as I would have liked to have gone back if only for the atmosphere. Then again I'm a little too accustomed to slightly more “rustic” hostels than the trendiness of Generator so perhaps the move would suit me ... but that's another story.

All in all the bank told me the only way to unlock my card was to return home as Paris happened to be the only location, on Earth apparently – maybe - they couldn't open it from. It didn't stop me from trying to join the Legion, but the added worry of knowing I had no bank account didn't ease my mind. To this day I never received a convincing explanation for why they locked it, but as someone who has suffered from various degrees of abuse, I have...

Le VB est l’un des endroits que je chéris le plus à Paris. Si je devais choisir un mot pour le définir, ce serait sans hésiter : générosité. Le VB, c’est un bar de quartier, le genre de lieu qui devient un repère pour les habitants du coin. On y célèbre nos joies, on y partage nos déceptions, et souvent, on refait le monde autour de ses tables rondes. On a cette impression rassurante que le VB est toujours ouvert, toujours prêt à nous accueillir avec une table rien que pour nous.

C’était le premier endroit où je suis allé dans le quartier, juste après mon emménagement. Après avoir déposé mon dernier carton, épuisée et assoiffée en ce chaud mois de septembre, j’avais besoin de me rafraîchir. J’y suis allé par hasard, et j’ai commandé un verre de coca. On me l’a servi avec un petit ramequin rempli de cacahuètes, des olives, des frites, et surtout, avec un grand sourire. Ce moment reste mon premier souvenir du VB. Depuis, j’en ai accumulé bien d’autres. Et pour couronner le tout, ils...

Not so cozy but best service you will have in Paris maybe, they offer free snacks ( olives, nuts etc sometimes french fries ). But seemed very cold place during wintertimes, heatings should be added. Also beers are much cheaper but lower alcohol concentration, so you buy 2 beer here = 1 beer other place if you want...