Sipping in the rain, Parisians flock to cherished cafés after Covid-19 shutdown

Waiters weaved their way among the tables, the café rang out with the clattering of plates and the clamour of conversation as the smell of fresh coffee and croissants drifted out into the street. One man began work on his laptop as a woman removed her mask and lit a cigarette; another settled into his chair for the morning with a copy of French daily Le Monde.

Ten minutes after opening, every seat at the legendary Café de Flore, and its rival and neighbour Les Deux Magots, was taken.

“As soon as we put a chair out, someone sat on it,” laughed the owner of the Flore, Alexandre Siljegovic, 36. “We’re so happy to see all the regulars again. We’ve been taking calls from customers for days.”

The Flore was one of thousands of French cafés, restaurants and bars reopening for the first time since October 30 in part 2 of the French government’s four-step path out of lockdown.  Non-essential shops rattled up their shutters, cinemas, museums and galleries welcomed visitors and the curfew was pushed back from 7pm to 9pm.

“Everyone’s been so impatient to come back,” said Siljegovic, amid relief that the rain had held off for the moment.

He wasn’t bothered by the sanitary restrictions – outside terraces can only operate at 50 percent capacity, a maximum of six guests can gather at a table and everyone must by seated – or by the lack of tourists, who come all year round to soak up the atmosphere of one of Paris’s most celebrated literary cafés. 

But he was very grateful for the French government’s support, which meant that he hadn’t had to fire a single one of his 70 employees.

“No other country in the world has been as generous as France has in the restaurant sector,” Bernard Boutboul, of the restaurant advisory group Gira, told FRANCE 24.

“Some restaurants preferred to stay shut for more than a year, not even reopening in the summer of 2020, because they made more money shut than they would have if they’d reopened.”

“Last October we thought maybe one in two restaurants would survive. But now, thanks to the government’s extraordinary help, we think that just under 20 percent will have to close,” said Boutboul, adding, however, that the French government hasn’t yet clarified what form restaurant aid will take in the coming months.

>> Read also: What to expect when France reopens on May 19

At the neighbouring Les Deux Magots, Benjamin, 44, a waiter, let out a sigh of pleasure with the “joy and relief of working again”.

“I was going mad at home waiting for this famous reopening,” he said as he set up tables. “I was even happy to be in a traffic jam this morning, that’s how happy I am!”

Not even the dark clouds overhead could dampen the atmosphere at the Pré aux Clercs café. The very first customer of the day, Catherine, a teacher, said she couldn’t start her day of classes without enjoying a coffee and a croissant on the terrace.

“What better present could I hope for on my birthday than the reopening of the terraces and museums,” said Emeline, a Parisian, who was celebrating her 27th birthday. “We’re definitely going to celebrate my birthday and the reopening of the museum tonight with my friends,” said the doctoral student in medical research.

“I’m not sure how yet, as it’s important to respect the rules, the curfew times. But what is certain is that we will celebrate this return to social life, to culture, to life itself!”

The rain began falling as the first visitors arrived at the Impressionist museum, the Musée d’Orsay. But nothing could dampen their mood.  

“It feels amazing to be here,” said Tur, 26, a Dutch student at Paris business school HEC. “I’ve been looking forward to this for days.”

“First thing first is the museum and tonight I’m going out for dinner. I don’t mind the rain.”

At the Café des Deux Musées, just outside the museum, the mood was equally buoyant.

The waiter lowered his mask to show his beaming smile, dancing with delight as he served clients on the pavement, and using his empty tray as an umbrella when he dashed back inside.

Marie-Alix, who works at the Orsay, and her friend Caroline, “who goes there as often as she can”, were “euphoric” that Paris had reopened.

“I feel so much lighter,” said Marie-Alix, as the rain rattled down on the bright yellow awning and bounced off the pavements.

“People need culture,” she continued. “There’s a magical feeling at the museum today. People are just so happy.”

But catering only to outside terraces comes with complications. The terrace of the Café des Ministères, which offers seasonal French food to office and government workers from the nearby Assemblée Nationale, sits across the road from the café itself.

Roxane Sévègnes, 33, who runs the restaurant with her husband Jean, sighed ruefully at the empty tables as she eyed the dark black clouds.

“We’ve put up four large parasols,” she said, “but that’s not the same thing as a roof.”

Sévègnes had no intention of working in a thunderstorm, dashing across the road in the rain with plates of food to clients 15 metres away.

“Who wants to eat a sodden plate of food? Wine and beer is one thing … But soggy food is another.”

But she also thought the bad weather was a cause for optimism, worrying that too many people out on the terraces all at once would lead to a resurgence of the virus.

“When we reopened in June we thought it was all behind us … and look what happened … If we have to close for a third time it will be really tricky.”

But most of the restaurant owners and clients on Wednesday didn’t want to talk about Covid-19. “I’m not even going to look at the figures tonight,” said Siljegovic, who was delighted by the sight of tables pouring onto the pavements of Paris once more. “I’m just so happy that the Flore is open again.”