A vintage scooter which looks like a child’s toy, hardly suitable for traffic in Paris that on closer inspection has been decoupaged with hundreds of “pin-up” photos.  

 Or, a beautiful mosaic that greets guests at a hotel in Montparnasse…this is just one tiny part of it…the mosaic, that is

Another building right around the corner caught my eye.  How can so much creativity be confined into one tiny area of the city?  What do you suppose it means?

Actually it happens to be The Hotel des Académies et des Arts, a very hip hotel that is getting rave reviews.  It is a bit off the beaten path, but what a great space.  Take a look.

Photos: Personal collection

Post from: The Paris Traveler

They have several menus to choose from, plus a large variety of daily specials written on a blackboard which changes daily. I was a little skeptical at first with such a wide selection, but everything we tried was excellent. The service is very friendly, but somewhat chaotic and the whole ambiance feels almost like you’re having dinner with a bunch of friends.

“Parnasse 138″ is not far from the heart of Montparnasse which is a great area for café sitting and people watching. (Four famous cafés are right nearby, La Coupole, le Dôme, le Select, and la Rotonde. There’s so much history there that I’ll devote an entire blog to them; think of Henry Miller, Anais Nin, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Hemingway, Fitzgerald,…okay, okay, I’ll stop, but you get the idea!)

The restaurant is open daily for lunch and dinner. Lunch is served from noon until 2:30 p.m. Dinner from 6 p.m. until 11:30 p.m. Menus start at 13.50€ for a simple but good three course meal. 17.50€ gives you a more elaborate selection and the 29.50€ offers you an apéritif (a before dinner drink) and a half-bottle of wine. Bon Appétit!

Parnasse 138
138 Boulevard du Montparnasse
Paris 14ème
Tél: 01.43.20.47.87
Métro: Vavin & Raspail

Post from: The Paris Traveler