Café de la Paix, Historic restaurant near Opéra Garnier, Paris, France.
Café de la Paix occupies the ground floor of the Grand Hôtel on the corner of Place de l'Opéra and Boulevard des Capucines. Its dining room has a painted ceiling framed by gilded molding, a row of gilded fluted columns, cream walls with gold detailing, a green patterned carpet and a large mirror on the far wall. Outside, dark green awnings and a green fascia frame the windows, with gold circular signs reading "CAFE DE LA PAX" above the entrances.
The establishment opened in 1862 during the Second Empire and later became registered as a national heritage site. Its Napoleon III architectural elements survive to the present day.
The café's name comes from the Grand-Hôtel de la Paix it served when it opened in 1862. Its proximity to the Palais Garnier drew regulars such as Jules Massenet, Émile Zola, Tchaikovsky and Guy de Maupassant. In 1896 it hosted film screenings, and in 1948 a radio studio there broadcast This Is Paris, the first live Paris-to-United States programme.
The location sits directly on the famous opera square and is easy to reach on foot; visitors find several public transit stations nearby. Daytime visits are usually more accessible than evening dining, as reservations for meals are important.
In 1896 the café hosted film screenings, and a radio studio later installed there broadcast "This Is Paris" in 1948, the first live broadcast from Paris to the United States. Walt Disney, who had visited while serving as a Red Cross ambulance driver in World War I, later placed the café in The Aristocats.
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