I’m a last minute sort of girl. I’m also usually late to the party and doesn’t it show – Valentine’s Day is tomorrow and I am posting this late in the afternoon of the 13th. However as the old adage goes – better late than never. I’m back in London now and dating (interesting) and one of the important things with dating is being able to cut a date short if it is going nowhere – I need to get better at that. Is your date worth coffee (20 mins), cocktail (depends on the size of the glass but a healthy 45 mins) or dinner (possibly 1.5 hours filled with chat, charm and a cab ride for two back to yours – steady!) Here are my choices of unique and sometimes rather chic places to go to either spend a wonderful loved up evening or one that makes you glad to be single and free. Coffee 
It could lead to wine or it might just be coffee but life’s too short to drink instant coffee right – so are you a filter, americano, espresso, ristretto (get me out quick) type of person as all these places serve that and more: 13 a baker’s dozen – tucked away at the back of a small courtyard and with one of the warmest welcomes in Paris is this gem of a place. If you are looking for a day time date this is the place to head to. The coffee is fresh and did I mention Laurel makes the best pies and muffins in town so if your date is stale at least you can have fresh pie! 16 rue des saints-pères, 75007 Paris La Palette – Seen and be seen darling in St Germain – take your date here because you know you’re hip and everyone else knows it too…Pinter, Picasso and now you and your date are sitting on the terrace sipping coffee. 43 rue de seine, 75006 Paris www.cafelapaletteparis.com Coutume – These people know coffee and so does half of Paris but if you can get in – why not sit at the bar that way nobody is too comfortable on the stools and you can make a run for it after 20 mins if your date is a drip. At least you know you’ll have drunk some of the best coffee Paris has to offer. 47 rue de babylone, 75007 Paris Cocktails 
So coffee has lead to cocktails or you thought you needed some hard stuff as admit it – it’s a Tinder date and you’ve ordered your cocktail and taken a huge gulp hoping that they look like their photo. Keep on drinking because they’ve just walked in and wait did they say they were 35 or 55? L’hotel – “just be yourself because everyone else is already taken” wise words Mr Wilde and the Born to Be Wilde cocktail will either put you in the mood or reaffirm that you need a proper wild child to rock your world. Also the chairs are super comfy. 13 rue des beaux arts, 75006 Paris www.l-hotel.com Le Mary Celeste – where is everyone in Paris? Why here for happy hour for those €1 oysters and tasty cocktails and aren’t oysters supposed to be an aphrodisiac it’s a shame he looks like a prawn – everything’s good to eat but the head. 1 rue commines, 75003 Paris www.lemaryceleste.com Candelaria – Its hidden bar behind a taco place…and dark and everyone looks good in the dark, right? 52 rue de saintonge, 75003 Paris www.candelariaparis.com Le Comptoir General – A ghetto museum – it’s different and out there and the rum punch is only €4 so at least you won’t be spending very much. 80 quay de jemmapes, 75010 Paris www.lecomptoirgeneral.com The Little Red Door – No you don’t go through the tiny red door or attempt to unless you are very drunk and if your date does that ditch them fast. It’s small inside but the cocktails pack a punch. 60 rue char lot, 75003 Paris www.lrdparis.com 1728 – What was once the Hotel Particulier of Lafayette treats you like royalty and you can sip and nibble something cold whilst reclining in plush, velvet chairs whilst deciding if your date deserves the royal treatment or off with their head? 8 rue d’anjou, 75008 Paris www.restaurant-1728.com Wanderlust – Being by the water is always good and your date fancies themselves as a bit of a hipster then hop on over to wanderlust? Oh it’s packed then head down the river to one of the little boats with deck chairs and bars springing up in the 13th arrondissement. 32 quai d’austerlitz, 75013 Paris www.wanderlustparis.com Eating is cheating… 
Sometimes eating isn’t cheating when you aren’t really eating a whole meal and let’s face it at 37 I need a little nibble when I drink something….! Ibaji – the hottest foodie street in town because you are hot – yes South Korean food darling South Korean and it’s delicious. 13 rue du vertbois,, 75003 Paris www.ibaji.fr Clamato – from the team behind one of the 50 best restaurants in the world Septime here is Clamato. A fish type bar or seafood with a no reservations policy but reservations if you want a table rather than sitting at the bar. Are you confused. Yes, it is confusing but that mackerel rillette is incredible and the wine well…did I mention it’s hip too. 80 rue de charonne, 75011 Paris www.septime-charonne.fr Le BAT – Tapas but reinvented and delicious, refined and not a glass of sangria in site. This is a great place to go for a drink and have a divine nibble before you start nibbling each other – naughty naughty. (Read more here) 16 boulevard montmartre, 75009 Paris www.le-bat.com Fish Club – You will have to sit at the bar if you don’t have a reservation but that is ok because they serve small dishes and have a full bar so before you decide if your date is your dish of day you could share a bowl of those wonderfully delicious tiny friend fish and drink crisp, cold, glass of something white – yum and if fish isn’t your thing the Meat Club is next door and they serve….meat! 58 rue jean-jacques rousseau, 75001 Paris www.eccfishclub.com DINNER 
Sometimes people are worth a cash dinner and sometimes they are worth whipping the plastic out for and then some…so if you are last minute like me some of these places you will have to visit next year when you’ve booked but others have a no reservations policy (that is love – they love disorganised people such as myself or am I just free spirited – discuss) David Toutain – this is fine dining at it’s best ( I should know having eaten here twice yes twice solo and with my best friend) and carte blanche so rather than sitting there thinking about what to order you let the chef work his magic whilst you work it on your date although doubtful you will get a reservation for V Day 2015 maybe 2016… 29 rue surcouf, 75007 Paris www.davidtoutain.com Amore & Gelosia – Passionate about food and love then what nationality rivals the French but the Italians of course and here you may actually forget about your date as the food is so good. The risotto is unctuous and might delight the tastebuds potentially more so than your date and the lemon tart that I’m still dreaming about 2 months later…Kajsa will take good care of you but it’s a popular place in St Germain and never more so than on V Day…that’s amore! 39 rue mazarine, 75006 Paris www.amoreegelosia.fr Le Sergent Recruter – who doesn’t dream about whisking their date away onto ann island and Ile St Louis tucked away behind Notre Dame…it’s a little island behind an island. This too is carte blanche so the only decision you have to make is to lean over and hold hands or play footsie under the table. 41 Rue Saint-Louis en L’Ile, 75004 Paris – www.lesergentrecruteur.fr Richer – Hoorah a no reservations restaurant that has won some serious accolades and is always busy but if you are willing to wait outside for a bit…yeah it’s cold but then you could always warm your date up whilst waiting! 2 Rue Richer, 75009 Paris – www.lericher.com Hotel Amour – Of course had to mention this place up in South Pigalle or SoPi for those in the know – achingly hot and with it’s little garden out back and rooms upstairs… 8 rue de Navarin, 75009 Paris www.hotelamourparis.fr Les Pinces – My favourite place in Paris – no reservation policy for tables under 6, has champers on the menu and serves whole lobsters with fries and salad for €25. Not only is this place good, the lobster fresh but you can check out just how good your date is with their hands and finding those hard to reach places oh la la! 29 rue du Bourg Tibour, 75004 Paris www.lespinces.com Cru – Oh my goodness your date announces they only eat raw…raw what…food and where do you find that in Paris after all you want something chic. Well head on over to Cru which is chic, raw and high end – the fish carpaccio I had was exquisite. (Read more here) 7 rue charlemagne 75004 Paris www.restaurantcru.fr L’Ilot – fish is good and healthy and light especially if you plan on something a little hot and heavy later on. This is a tiny bijou of a place with fresh fish, oysters, lovely waiting staff and reasonably priced. 4 rue de la corderie 75003 Paris Nanashi – Something light but needs to have gluten free, vegan and lactose free stuff on the menu because you can’t remember what your date’s dietary requirements are but you want meat. Nanashi is the place to go – it caters for all dietary needs in a cute Parisan take on the Bento box and serves alcohol and meat – phew! (Read more here) 57 rue charlot, 75003 Paris www.nanashi.fr Monsieur Bleu – who is this Mr Grey everyone keeps talking on about? He may need 50 shades but Monsieur Bleu well he has just one – an exquisite view of the Eiffel Tower and nothing screams love in the City of Love quite like it…twinkling on the hour, your date on bended knee…wait is that a diamond – oui, I say oui! 20 avenue de New York, 75016 Paris www.monsieurbleu.com
