This is my new favourite place in Paris! It’s relaxed, it’s fun, the drinks are cheap and the surrounds are fantastic. A few hours here on a sunny Sunday afternoon and you’ll be fully recharged. Isn’t that what we all want out of a little break?
Onto the advice. Sundays are considered the best days to go but be sure to get there early like we did. The place opens at 3pm during the Summer -and make no mistake- this is absolutely a warm weather venue.
The bar itself is quite small and you’ll recognise it by the turquoise exterior walls. Or, if you manage to get there just before it opens, by the small crowd of locals waiting across the road. The reason they do this is also the main reason you’ll want to go there yourself. Chaises longues (or ‘deck chairs’ for our American friends). There are only about twenty or so and they are stacked to the right of the door as you enter the bar. These chaises are available on a ‘first come, first served’ basis.
What you do is grab a couple of chaises, order some beers (€2.50 each. Cheap!) and pop yourself down right by the canal. Al fresco drinking at its best. There is a very busy cycle track right outside the bar so make sure you check both ways before you cross. (This gets a little difficult after the third round.)
Bar Ourcq has got to have some of the cheapest drinks you’ll find in Paris (they do cocktails and beer by the jug if you are planning on sticking around) and a really fun atmosphere in which to enjoy them.
If you don’t manage to arrive in time to get yourself some chaises it’s no matter. Just sit down on the cobbled pavement and pounce when another group leaves. You can dangle your feet in the water like some of the locals do but I was too chicken because I erroneously assume all bodies of urban water are as polluted as the Thames. I didn’t want to pull my feet out only to find they had turned into hooves or something.
Should sitting and world-watching be a bit too sedate for you, bring along your own boules set and play petanque in the sandy area between the canal and the bar. According to the website, they have petanque sets available to borrow but when we were there we only saw a great big stack of board games. Although we weren’t exactly looking for them as we were there on a birthday trip so drinking and mild sunburn were the only things on the itinerary.
If arriving by velib is not really your cup of tea then the closest metro stop is Laumiere. Just follow the signs to the canal and keep an eye out for the turquoise exterior walls. This is definitely a place we will go back to. It’s absolutely worth the trip.
Thank you to Gorden for sharing his story with us on Little Break Big Difference. If you would like to find out more about George please visit his blog.
Adress: Bar Ourcq / 68 Quai de la Loire – 75019 Paris
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