Les cafés
The Cafés

Summary/Abstract: In the second half of the seventeenth century one of the first Parisian cafes was created by a certain Armenian named Pascal. He sold his coffee at the Saint-Germain fair, but was forced to move his boutique on Quai du Louvre. He later hired a Sicilian waiter called Francesco Procope dei Coltelli who later gave his name to his Café called “Procope”, a charming and luminous place of candelabra and mirrors. Besides the famous Procope, the Café de la Régence is one of the most frequented Parisian cafés. Having taken this name in 1718 because of its position near the Palais Royal, the café brings together heterogeneous circles such as men of letters, philosophers, chess players and police snitches. Coffee appears in some libertine writings but, unlike chocolate and champagne, it is more linked to social life while being part of the libertine decor.

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