Le Mary Celeste in Paris's 3e doubles as wine bar and cocktail bar. The Oyster Mary, an inversion of the bloody, gets the room press it deserves.
Food program: Oysters and small plates
Tip: Happy hour is daily 16:00-18:00; oysters at €1.20 each pair with the Oyster Mary.
Address: 1 Rue Commines, 75003 Paris
Prescription Cocktail Club in Paris's 6e is the Experimental group's Left Bank sister, more relaxed than the 2e mothership and easier on a Friday walk-up.
Signature drink: Custom-built cocktails
Food: Snacks
Tip: No reservations. The Sunday DJ from 22:00 is the slow-start shift to aim for if you want a seat.
Copper Bay in Paris's 10e is the maritime-themed bar Aurélie Pannequin and her crew built into a corner of the Faubourg Saint-Denis cocktail strip.
Signature drink: Tiki-tilted Caribbean cocktails
Food: Snacks
Tip: Reservations for parties of 4+; under 4 walk in. The cargo-themed flights rotate quarterly.
Bâton Rouge in Paris's 9e is the New Orleans-themed cocktail bar Joseph Akhavan opened in 2014. The Sazerac and Vieux Carré are the room's defining cocktails.
Signature drink: Sazerac, Vieux Carré
Food: Snacks
Tip: Half-price daiquiri hour from 19:00 to 20:30. The back room holds the quieter banquette seats.
Bisou in Paris's 3e is the no-menu cocktail bar Nicolas Munoz built around five-minute conversations with each guest. The bartender then mixes one drink each.
Signature drink: No menu, bartender's pick
Food: Snacks
Tip: Reservations only; first round €14, refills €12. Ask for a non-alcoholic option and they will build one.
Lavomatic in Paris's 10e is the speakeasy hidden behind a working laundromat front. Walk through the washing machines to the swing-set bar; cocktails until 02:00.
Signature drink: Coffee-led cocktails
Food: Snacks
Tip: The launderette is real. Push through the back door past the machines; reservations advised Friday and Saturday.
Bar 228 inside Le Meurice in Paris is the dark-wood-and-leather palace bar where William Oliveri ran a 30-year programme of palace-grade Bloody Marys.
Signature drink: Bloody Mary
Food: Bistro carte
Tip: Open 11:00-02:00. The terrace fronts the Rue de Rivoli arcade; pop in for an afternoon Pastis.
