Paris/2nd arrondissement

The 2nd arrondissement of Paris is one of the financial centres of Europe, being home to the Bourse (stock exchange) and thus the CAC 40 index you hear about in world financial news. Other major activities in the neighbourhood are journalism and fashion.

The 2nd is home to the galleries—covered passages lined with shops—which are quite possibly the prototypes of today's shopping malls. One finds shops, cafés and hotels inside.

While the aforementioned are all daylight activities, the east end of the arrondissement has an entirely different reputation, having been home to Paris's red-light district since sometime in the early renaissance.

Being right in the middle of the city, the 2nd arrondissement is well served by the Métro system. 5 lines provide direct access to the district via 10 different stations.

•  8  and  9  both run east-west right across the northern edge of the arrondissement with 4 stations, distanced every 200 to 400 meters. Take your pick, all of the stations are small, and unless you're making a connection just as good as another.
•  3  runs east-west right through the centre of the arrondissement, with 5 stations down rue du Quatre Septembre and rue Réaumur.
•  4  runs north-south along the eastern edge.
•  7  running north-south, has one stop (Opéra  3  7  8 ) near the west edge of the arrondissement.

48°52′4″N 2°20′29″E

Map of Paris/2nd arrondissement

As the 2nd is the smallest arrondissement, it is easy to travel many places within it on foot. It's possible to comfortably walk the entire perimeter of the district in around an hour. Much of the SE corner is closed to traffic.

• 48.86662.33821 la Bibliothèque Nationale de France, 58 rue Richelieu (Métro: Bourse or Palais-Royal), ☏ +33 1 53 79 59 59. Reading rooms, M-F, 09:00-18:00; Sa, 09:00-17:00; exhibitions, Tu-Sa, 10:00-19:00. Try to visit the cabinet des Médailles. Library, free; exhibitions, €5-10.  

The 2nd arrondissement covers some of the nicest old parts of Paris.

• 48.8666672.3408332 Notre Dame des Victoires. 17th century church.  
• 48.8658332.3411113 Place des Victoires. Beautiful round "square" with an equestrian statue of King Louis XIV and matching 17th century buildings.  

There have been dozens of attempts by various regimes at all levels including the city, the state, and the church to chase the working girls away from the east end of the 2nd arrondissement, but for some reason they always come back. Interestingly, the word "bordello" originates here, from the boards that the women used to subdivide the rooms they rented in houses along the rue Saint Denis and others.

The press has had nearly as long a run in the neighbourhood just to the west, and several of France's major newspapers still maintain offices here.

• 48.86432.348064 La Tour Jean-sans-Peur, 20, rue Étienne-Marcel (Métro: Étienne-Marcel). Apr-Oct, W-Su, 13:30-18:00. One of the last remnants of medieval Paris outside of the 4th, this tower was once part of a castle called l'hôtel de Bourgogne. €5; students €3; guided tour, €8.  

• 48.8708612.3375111 Théâtre national de l'Opéra-Comique (National Opéra Comic Theatre), 5, rue Favart, ☏ +33 1 42 44 45 40. The théâtre national de l'Opéra-Comique (National Opéra Comic Theatre) is an opera company and opera house.  

• 48.8649442.3468611 Rue Montorgueil pedestrian area. Rue Montorgueil is like a scene from a movie. Closed to traffic, the street is a food-lovers delight, with cafes, bars, and all types of fresh produce for sale in the open air.  
• 48.8676862.3478072 Terroirs d'Avenir, 6-7-8, rue du Nil, ☏ +33 1 45 08 48 80. Slow food distribution on three different stores: a grocer, a fish monger and a butcher. They all source fresh, quality, mostly organic produce.  
• 48.8669872.3442133 La librairie gourmande, 92-96 rue Montmartre, ☏ +33 1 43 54 37 27, [email protected]. L-Sa 11:00-19:00. The book shop is specialized on books for chefs, interested cooks or foodies.  

Prototypical indoor shopping malls, the galleries got their start in 1786 when the Duke of Orleans realized that there was money to be made by renting out his cloistered garden to small shops. With their glass roofs and tiled floors they were a welcome respite to the newly emerging middle-class shopper of the early 19th century, in the days before electric light and sidewalks.

A walking tour of the galleries can easily be accomplished in an hour or so, and is worthwhile even though they are long past their glory days.

• 48.8666672.3397224 La Gallerie Vivienne. Start with the best preserved of the galleries and whose décor has been maintained in authentic colours from the era. It's really the mosaic floor which is the star of the show. The shops are distinctly upscale, and all about conspicuous consumption: a wine seller, a tea shop, and a dealer in antique books are among the highlights.  (updated Jun 2017)
• 48.869022.3357535 Passage Choiseul. A considerably more down-to-earth gallery, the passage mainly serves traders on their way to the bourse, with the same class of shops that one might find in a pedestrian tunnel in New York or Chicago: a shoeshine stand, a newsstand, and little almost-but-not-quite fast-food restaurants.  (updated Jun 2017)

You can find more galleries throughout the arrondissement, namely

• 48.8711112.3416676 Passage des Panoramas.  (updated Jun 2017)
• 48.87152.339387 Passages des Princes.  (updated Jun 2017)
• 48.8648142.349258 Passage du Grand-Cerf.  (updated Jun 2017)

• 48.8658812.3436231 Blend Hamburger, 44, rue d'Argout (Métro Sentier). French meat with home made ketchup. €15 lunch menu, €10 burger.  
• 48.8664322.3399992 Le Bougainville, 5, rue de la Banque (Métro Bourse), ☏ +33 1 42 60 05 19. M-Sa 19:00-21:00, but food is only served at lunch from 11:30 to 15:30. This comfy little bar offers home cooking from the Auvergne region, and after-work drinks for the financial set. Sandwiches, €3; plates €12-15.  
• 48.8688542.3365473 Grillé, 15, rue Saint-Augustin (Métro Quatre-Septembre). M-F 09:00-19:00. A fast food restaurant that makes a "healthy" version of kebab (good herbs, better salad). Three cooks, Marie Carcassonne, Hugo Desnoyer, and Frédéric Peneau worked on this creation. €8 kebab, €10 formule.  
• 48.868842.3373114 Rani Mahal, 9, rue Saint-Augustin, ☏ +33 1 42 97 53 24. This Indian restaurant is raved about by vegetarians. It serves meat as well.  

• 48.8648492.3454465 Café Etienne Marcel, 34, rue Etienne Marcel (Métro Etienne Marcel), ☏ +33 1 45 08 01 03. A Costes brothers creation but with lower prices than many of their other restaurants. The Etienne Marcel combines a creative menu with hip interior design and hip musical ambiance. Vegetarians: The crispy risotto balls (risotto croustillant) are amazing, and pretty much impossible to make at home. €15-20.  
• Le Tambour, 41, rue Montmartre, ☏ +33 1 42 33 06 90. Dinner until 03:30 !. The really distinguishing feature of the Tambour is its very late hours. 

• 48.8687062.3343486 Drouant, 16-18, place Gaillon, ☏ +33 1 42 65 15 16. Anthony Clémot runs this French kitchen.  

• 48.8663472.3443441 Café Noir, 65, rue Montmartre (Métro Sentier or Bourse), ☏ +33 1 45 08 42 35. A particularly fine example of a Paris café.  
• La Cantine, 151, rue Montmartre (Passage des Panoramas, Métro Grandes Boulevards). M-F, 09:00-18:00. A technology focused café and co-working space. 
• 48.864392.3502562 The Frog & Rosbif, 116, rue St Denis (Métro Etienne Marcel), ☏ +33 1 42 36 34 73. As you probably know the English use the word "frog" as an ethnic slur for the French. You may not know that the word "rosbif" is a French ethnic slur for the English. Well, it seems that there are mostly no hard feelings over a pint, or so the presence of this chain of 6 English pubs in the French capital would tend to suggest.  
• 48.8692192.3322183 ^{[dead link]} Harry's New York Bar, 5, rue Daunou (Metro Opéra), ☏ +33 1 42 61 71 14. M-Su, 10:30-04:00. Legend has it that Harry's New York Bar was the birthplace of the Bloody Mary invented by Fernand "Pete" Petiot, an American bartender, and was another Hemingway hangout.  

• Hôtel des Boulevards, 10, rue de la Ville-Neuve, ☏ +33 1 42 36 02 29. Doubles with sink, €40; with a shower, €55. 
• Hôtel Sainte-Marie, 6, rue de la Ville-Neuve (Métro Bonne-Nouvelle), ☏ +33 1 42 33 21 61. Doubles with a sink, €40-54; with a shower and toilet, €60-70. 

• Hôtel Ascot Opéra, 2, rue Monsigny, ☏ +33 1 42 96 87 66. Short walk from the department stores Printemps and Galeries Lafayette, Opéra, Place de la Madeleine, and the Louvre. 
• Hôtel Bonne Nouvelle, 17, rue Beauregard (Métro Bonne-Nouvelle), ☏ +33 1 45 08 42 42. Old world charm. Doubles, €60-70. 
• Hôtel Lautrec Opéra, 8-10 rue d'Amboise. €95+. 
• Hôtel Paris France, 21, rue du louvre (Métro Bourse), ☏ +33 9 77 21 75 04.  
• Hôtel Vivienne, 40, rue Vivienne (Métro Bourse), ☏ +33 1 42 33 13 26.  
• Tiquetonne Hôtel, 6, rue Tiquetonne (Métro Etinne-Marcel or Réaumur-Sébastopol), ☏ +33 1 42 36 94 58, fax: +33 1 42 36 02 94. Closed during August, and between Christmas and New Year's. Doubles with a sink, €40. 
• Tryp Hôtel Paris François, 3, boul Montmartre (Métro Grandes-Boulevards), ☏ +33 1 42 33 51 53.  

• Hôtel Etats-Unis Opéra, 16, rue d'Antin, ☏ +33 1 80 02 30 04.  
• Hôtel Victoires Opera, 56, rue de Montorgueil (Métro Sentier), ☏ +33 1 42 36 41 08.  
• Park Hyatt Paris - Vendome, 5, rue de la Paix (Métro Opéra), ☏ +33 1 58 71 12 34, [email protected]. Palatial hotel with a residential feel and personalised service. Within walking distance of Place Vendôme. 
• 48.86812.33131 Hotel Stendhal Place Vendôme Paris - MGallery Collection, 22 Rue Danielle Casanova.  

Levallois-Perret ← 9th arrondissement ←	W  E	→ 3rd arrondissement → 20th arrondissement
18th arrondissement ← 10th arrondissement ←	N  S	→ 1st arrondissement → 14th arrondissement