This ‘bar à naan’ (ho ho) near Porte Saint-Denis is an Indian-themed cocktail bar with themed snack food like naans and skewered meat. The interior is elaborately done out like the inside of a vintage train, with the long, narrow main room filled with leather benches and light streaming out of the ‘windows’ (screens hung on the wall showing various countryside scenes floating by). At the very end of the bar, a screen even shows a video of railway tracks rolling off into the distance.
Although all this extravagant décor is stunning, it doesn’t quite make up for the prices. Smallish cocktails range from €12 to €15, although some are fun, like the Tajma – a heady mix of four rums and pineapple juice served in a fresh coconut. The food is also good but expensive (it’s €4-€8.50 for a naan and €5.50 on average for a pair of skewers). Sadly it’s also quite noisy, and the service can be unreliable – our cocktails take ages to prepare, arriving a good ten minutes after the food. Still, if you’re not after a quiet date location, it’s just about worth coming along for the wacky interior design.
TRANSLATION: HUW OLIVER