Café de l’Eléphant: Update
Michael Jones has just returned from a quick trip to Paris and sends along some updated photos of the Café de l’Eléphant (now l’Eléphant Noctambule) which Henry Miller frequented in the early 1930′s to visit his favorite prostitute, Germaine Deaugard.
l’Eléphant Noctambule at 40 boulevard Beaumarchais
If you compare with the photo from the previous post, taken around 2000, you’ll notice that the exterior awning has been replaced. We also now have an interior view of the cafe. Look closely and you can make out various bits of pachydermic decor as well as a cute little café dog on the floor.
Interior of l’Eléphant Noctambule
l’Eléphant Noctambule from a different angle
10 comments on "Café de l’Eléphant: Update"
I missed this one. Looks like I’ve got to go back to Paris…
Seems odd (to me) that the happy hour sign is in English. Is this an expat hangout still?
Not sure, but I think “happy hour” is just one of those English-isms the French have adopted into their own daily language — like “weekend” or “football.” I doubt it’s much of an expat hangout and wouldn’t have been one in the 30′s when Miller used to drop by.
¿alguien sabe algo de que fue la dela vida de Germaine Deaugard, por favor? ¿què quedó de aquel hotelucho?
Not having heard the term Happy Hour other than in London’s bars and public houses, I had always assumed that it was solely a British one. But after giving the term a quick search via Wikipedia, I found a plethora of descriptions pertaining to its origins. It seems that it was first used in the United States Navy in the Nineteen Twenties, but that today has basically come to mean alcohol that is sold cheaply at certain times. As for the Elephant being an expat hangout, when I went there in 2008 I definitely didn’t get that impression.
“Happy Hour” is a common term in both Germany and France (probably most places in Europe). I’ve lived in both countries for a quite a while. You can see signs like this in front of bars all the time, even in small towns where they wouldn’t expect any American tourists. :)
I guess what surprised me was that it was written in English. Does it not translate into French?
In the U.S. it typically means “let’s go get some drinks after work.” Most bars and restaurants have a happy hour with maybe $1 off drinks or cheap appetizers.
You could certainly translate the words happy and hour into French. My guess is the concept of happy hour where for a limited time each day the drink prices are reduced began in English-speaking countries and the French just imported the concept and the term wholesale.
This sort of language borrowing goes on all the time. Just think of all the French restaurant terms that are regularly used (or misused) in English-speaking countries: entree, menu, a la carte, cuisine, dessert, etc.
I confirm it has changed a lot since I discovered this café in 1984 – Until the late ’90s, it looked much more ‘parisien’, unfortunately – As a french licenced tour guide, I wonder how you can be so precise (and even precious to us) on those US websites – do you all belong to the C.I.A. folks? Do you spy us all the time like that ? ;-)
Hello. I had visited this cafe with my friend in winter in 2007. Their staffs were very kind to us. I want to go to the cafe again. But, we are in Japan! It is sooooo far… I forgot their names. If they see this comment, I want them to send a mail for me.
