On the Terraces of Paris –waiting tables at L'Esmeralda, Rue du Cloître Notre-Dame.

L'Esmeralda on Rue du Cloître Notre-Dame in the 4th arrondissement. This terrace sits in one of the most historic corners of Paris, right behind Notre-Dame Cathedral on the Île de la Cité.

The café takes its name from Esmeralda, the gypsy heroine of Victor Hugo’s 1831 novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame. Hugo set much of the story on and around this very island, including the cathedral square where Esmeralda dances and finds refuge. The name keeps alive the literary connection to one of France’s greatest writers and his timeless tale of love, justice and the medieval city.

A place where you can sit with a coffee or glass of wine and feel layers of Parisian history all around.

Bon jeudi !

“A Paris terrace is never just somewhere to sit, it’s a way of observing the city at its own pace.”

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Part of the “On the Terraces of Paris” series

Each Thursday we take a seat on one of Paris’s terraces, those open-air rooms where the city’s everyday life unfolds in full view.

Browse the full series

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