Great place to start a day with a cup of coffee from the best roasters in the city, to eat lunch, to have an aperitif with your friends and to listen to a jazz concert every weekend.

This is another artistic centre that opened recently, this time housed in a former 19th century music hall that later became an indoor roller coaster attraction (yeah, really). The temporary exhibitions can be hit or miss, but I like hanging out in the free, open-to-all library on the first floor where you can sit in the futurist media pods and flip through the latest arts, culture, music, design and architecture magazines. Their shelves are also filled with a growing endowment of books which seem to be acquired according to the theme of the aforementioned exhibitions. Internet access is available on a dozen or so PCs (or via WiFi on your own machine) and for gamers, there are a few consoles connected to largish plasma screens. The café upstairs, with its classic baroque meets retro-futurist interior, is a sight to behold.

A fantastic bookstore, with a wonderful selection of books on photography, architecture, painting, graphics, design, cinema, music and cooking

Cute place to listen to jazz music and chill

Ofr is a bookstore, gallery and lifestyle. Alex and Marie have been running one version or another of this Paris institution for the last 20 years. The shelves are always packed with a new selection of books, magazines and art.