Bouillon Chartier (), or simply Chartier, is a "

bouillon Bouillon can refer to: Food * Bouillon (broth), a simple broth ** Court-bouillon, a quick broth * Bouillon (soup), a Haitian soup * Bouillon (restaurant), a traditional type of French restaurant ** Bouillon Chartier, a bouillon restaurant fou ...

" restaurant in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

founded in 1896, located in the 9th arrondissement and classified as a ''

monument historique () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...

'' since 1989.

History

The restaurant was created in 1896 by two brothers, Frédéric and Camille Chartier, in a building resembling a railway station concourse. The long

Belle Époque The Belle Époque () or La Belle Époque () was a period of French and European history that began after the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871 and continued until the outbreak of World War I in 1914. Occurring during the era of the Fr ...

dining room has a high

ceiling A ceiling is an overhead interior roof that covers the upper limits of a room. It is not generally considered a structural element, but a finished surface concealing the underside of the roof structure or the floor of a story above. Ceilings can ...

supported by large columns which allows for a

mezzanine A mezzanine (; or in Italian, a ''mezzanino'') is an intermediate floor in a building which is partly open to the double-height ceilinged floor below, or which does not extend over the whole floorspace of the building, a loft with non-sloped ...

, where service is also provided. It opened with the name "''Le Bouillon''" (lit.

broth Broth, also known as bouillon (), is a savory liquid made of water in which meat, fish, or vegetables have been simmered for a short period of time. It can be eaten alone, but it is most commonly used to prepare other dishes, such as soups ...

, or

stock Stocks (also capital stock, or sometimes interchangeably, shares) consist of all the Share (finance), shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided. A single share of the stock means fractional ownership of the corporatio ...

, but in this context, a type of

brasserie In France, Flanders, and the Francophone world, a brasserie () is a type of French restaurant with a relaxed setting, which serves dishes and other meals. The word ''brasserie'' is French for "brewery" and, by extension, "the brewing busine ...

; originally a cheap workers' eatery that served stew), near the

Grands Boulevards The ''grands boulevards'' The ''Grands Boulevards'' are the quintessence of the Parisian boulevards. Their origin is a plan initiated by Louis XIV's minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert in the late 1660s, of comprehensive reforms and remodeling ...

, the

Hôtel Drouot Hôtel Drouot is a large auction venue in Paris, known for fine art, antiques, and antiquities. It consists of 16 halls hosting 70 independent auction firms, which operate under the umbrella grouping of Drouot. The firm's main location, called D ...

, the

Musée Grévin The ' (; ) () is a wax museum located on the Grands Boulevards in the 9th arrondissement of Paris on the right bank of the Seine. The also has a location in Seoul. opened in 2013, and closed in 2021. History The museum was founded in 1882 by ...

, and the Palais de la Bourse. The restaurant has had only four owners since opening.

Service

The restaurant is open 365 days a year with a

menu In a restaurant, the menu is a list of food and beverages offered to the customer. A menu may be à la carte – which presents a list of options from which customers choose, often with prices shown – or table d'hôte, in which case a pre-est ...

offering traditional

French cuisine French cuisine is the cooking traditions and practices of France. In the 14th century, Guillaume Tirel, a Court (royal), court chef known as "Taillevent", wrote ''Le Viandier'', one of the earliest recipe collections of medieval France. In ...

. The

table service The foodservice (US English) or catering (British and Commonwealth English) Industry (economics), industry includes the businesses, institutions, and companies which prepare meals outside the home. It includes restaurants, grocery stores, school ...

is provided by

waiting staff Waiting staff ( BrE), waiters () / waitresses (), or servers (AmE) are those who work at a restaurant, a diner, or a bar and sometimes in private homes, attending to customers by supplying them with food and drink as requested. Waiting staff ...

dressed in the traditional '' rondin'', a tight-fitting black

waistcoat A waistcoat ( UK and Commonwealth, or ; colloquially called a weskit) or vest ( US and Canada) is a sleeveless upper-body garment. It is usually worn over a dress shirt and necktie and below a coat as a part of most men's formal wea ...

with multiple pockets and a long white

apron An apron is a garment worn over other clothing to cover the front of the body to protect from liquids. They have several purposes, most commonly as a functional accessory that protects clothes and skin from stains and marks. However, other typ ...

. The restaurant's popularity leads to lines in the courtyard or under the

porch A porch (; , ) is a room or gallery located in front of an entrance to a building. A porch is placed in front of the façade of a building it commands, and forms a low front. Alternatively, it may be a vestibule (architecture), vestibule (a s ...

and sometimes on the sidewalk outside. Tables are shared between strangers. The

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Pl ...

is written directly on the

disposable A disposable (also called disposable product) is a product designed for a single use after which it is recycled or is disposed as solid waste. The term is also sometimes used for products that may last several months (e.g. disposable air filt ...

paper

tablecloth A tablecloth is a cloth used to cover a table. Some are mainly ornamental coverings, which may also help protect the table from scratches and stains. Other tablecloths are designed to be spread on a dining table before laying out tableware and ...

at the end of the meal. Serving stops at 11:30 PM.

In popular culture

* The restaurant is mentioned in

Albert Willemetz Albert Willemetz (14 February 1887 – 7 October 1964) was a French librettist. Career Albert Willemetz was a prolific lyricist. He invented a new type of musical, with a humorous and "sexy" style. He was the author of more than 3000 songs, inc ...

1939 This year also marks the start of the World War II, Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Events related to World War II have a "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Coming into effect in Nazi Ger ...

song " Félicie aussi", sung by

Fernandel Fernand Joseph Désiré Contandin (8 May 1903 – 26 February 1971), better known as Fernandel, was a French comic actor. Born in Marseille, France, to Désirée Bedouin and Denis Contandin, originating in Perosa Argentina, a town located in th ...

. * In ''Les Beaux Quartiers'',

Louis Aragon Louis Aragon (; 3 October 1897 – 24 December 1982) was a French poet who was one of the leading voices of the Surrealism, surrealist movement in France. He co-founded with André Breton and Philippe Soupault the surrealist review ''Littératur ...

mentions Le Bouillon Chartier: the young medical student character Edmond Barbentane has lunch there regularly. * A description of dining at Le Bouillon Chartier in the early 1970s is given by John Adamson in ''Footloose in France''.Adamson, John, and Clive Jackson, ''Footloose in France'', Cambridge: John Adamson, 2023, .

Notes

External links

* {{coord, 48, 52, 24, N, 2, 20, 37, E, region:FR-75_type:landmark_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title Restaurants in Paris Buildings and structures in the 9th arrondissement of Paris Tourist attractions in Paris 19th century in France 1896 establishments in France Restaurants established in 1896 Belle Époque

History

Service

In popular culture

See also

Notes

External links