The entry to Parc de la Villette,  this area is the alternative/preferred waterside hangout for many Parisians. One can take sun during Paris Plage in the summer, play petanque, lending a set of balls from the Bar Ourcq, have a picnic or simply stroll and enjoy the serene modern surroundings. Always spectacular is the routine opening of the bridges.

Quai de la Loire, Quai de la Seine, 75019
M: Ourcq, Juares, Stalingrad

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With 55 acres of culture, lesure and architecture, Parc de la Villette is the city’s largest and most modern. Built on Napoleon III’s  slaughterhouse grounds in 1982 as part of urban redevelopment project, this abstract space contains 35 acres of green, the concert halls  Zenith and Trabendo, 10 themed gardens,  museum of music, museum of science and industry, 26 “follies” or installations, 160 playground games, 3220 trees, cafes, restaurants, hosts festivals and spectacles, in the summer runs open air movie nights…even has its own nudist colony!

The park was designed by Bernard Tschumi, a world-renowned architect of the deconstructivist movement. He has also designed the new Acropolis Museum in Athens, Greece.

Parc de la Villette
211, avenue Jean Jaurès, 75019
M: Porte de la Villette

http://www.villette.com/fr/

Number one reason this bar is great: they lend you petonque balls to play on the canal.
Number two reason: they take care of the canal by offering a free drink to those who fill up a plastic cup full of cig butts ( with the number of cigarettes smoked out there it takes less than 30 seconds.)
Number three:  for the fact that it is cheap.
Number four: for at night its a great place to party with dj sets and concerts.
Number five: for its friendly staff.

00 33 01 42 40 12 26
68, quai de la Loire, 75019
M: Juares, Stalingrad, Laumiere, Ourcq

http://barourcq.free.fr

Closed: Monday and Tuesday
Friday and Saturday 15h-2 am, other nights till midnight

A hidden ‘no frills’ canteen where you go with fifteen of your best friends after you drink too many mojitos at Cafe Cherie next door. Everyone is a big happy family once inside, taken care of by the two brothers who run the place. The food is basic, good and best of all cheap by Paris standards. There are salads, steaks and fries, and the ever convivial couscous. No need to reserve, just maybe wait a bit.