La Féline

Time Out says

Mon Jul 2 2012

This is one of Time Out's 100 best bars in Paris. Click here to see the full list.

La Féline is a minuscule rock’n’roll bar near Ménilmontant. Its posters of 50s rock groups and its rockabilly music – much of which is produced by its own eponymous record label – attract the crowd you might expect: punks and their dogs, the pierced and the tattooed, hipsters and ageing rockers. The bar is always being propped up by dangerously sexy glam rock chicks, all leopard skin dresses and leather skirts, peep-toe shoes, slim cigars and the reddest of red lipsticks – everyone’s done up to the nines and the general feeling is of being on film. But the ambiance doesn’t suffer from its particular mise en scène – on the contrary, the clientele are charming, everyone hanging out drinking beer in casual groups. The place is so well known that many young tourists come for a visit just out of curiosity – everyone on this scene goes back and forth between here and Chez Zack, another tiny bar directly opposite, but La Féline remains the destination of choice. Small concerts are organised regularly, and sometimes screenings, but come early if you want any chance of a seat.

By CG/EH