Part of the selection of organic wines

Perhaps it’s the American in me talking, you know, seeing France through rose-coloured glasses as the centre of gourmet and elegance when it comes to all things food and wine. I mean, this is the place were each apple slice is painstakingly placed in perfectly co-centric circles in a tarte aux pommes and where the twisted up a piece of paper around your croissant looks like an artistic masterpiece. I for one would think that all French people are foodies by nature. My recent visit to Café de la Nouvelle Mairie in Paris proved, yet again, that France and the French continue to surprise me.

This quaint little wine bar is located in the 5^th arrondissement, steps from the Sorbonne and the Panthéon. Tucked away from the busier boulevards of the quarter, the café looks onto a small park and oddly enough, given the intellectual vibe of the neighborhood, faces the French headquarters for Universal Music. The décor is subtle in hues of brown and beige with 1960’s-esque sconces and funky wine-themed artwork. There are only about 20 tables, but patrons can also stand at the curved bistro-style bar for a quick coffee on the fly. The music is jazz and only jazz, according to co-owner Benjamin Fourty, which just solidifies the unobtrusive, chilled chic that attracts a calm mix of students, professors, editors, and the occasional music exec.

The motto: good food, good wine, good coffee, good music, good prices. Everything, save the prices part, seems to be what any café in Paris might boast, right? Here’s the catch. Everything served at this café is all natural and all local. Given that, in France, there is a prevailing desire to know the origins of your food (down to little pictures of the cow in front of the beef at the butchers), it was surprising to hear that Café de la Nouvelle Mairie was one of only a few in the city to operate according to this purely natural philosophy.

Here, the vegetables are organic, the cheese and meats are purchased from small producers, and the wines are hand chosen by the café’s owners from slightly obscure vineyards in regions like Auvergne and the Loire. The owners maintain a close relationship with all of their suppliers, assuring the best quality rather than big name products. You won’t, for example, find a well-known Bordeaux or Dom Perignon on the menu, but you will find a great bottle of wine from slightly unexpected regions of the country that are made of 100% grape juice. (Yes, you’ve read correctly, according to Fourty even governmentally certified, sometimes high-priced wines in France can be made from up to 150 different ingredients). As compared to other café owners in Paris, Fourty might sacrifice selling a well-known brand or label in favor of superior quality and purity.

The café rotates a selection of 14 different wines chosen from its expansive underground cellar that stocks between 5000 and 6000 bottles.The food is typical of Parisian bistros with terrines, thick-cut steaks and rich stews. This traditionally Parisian cuisine au naturel doesn’t, however, mean crazy prices; a glass of wine will set you back approximately 5 € and a main course is under 20 €.  Their espresso is also excellent and at 1€ a pop, that’s all the boxes ticked when it comes to ‘good food, good wine, good coffee, good music, good prices.’

A chic, relaxed ambiance at Café de la Nouvelle Mairie in Paris' Fifth arondissement