Austerlitz / Bibliothèque François Mitterand

Coming down to this area will not give you those “wow, this is Paris!” vibes. But that doesn’t mean you should disregard the area completely because it still is a part of Paris — albeit a more…sterile version (picture modernized buildings with the current trend of high ceilings and large vitrines). If you’re a bibliophile, head towards Bibliothèque François Mitterand* and you’ll be regaled with French literary collections, comics, manuscripts, expositions, and more. And bonus, if you try really hard and use your imagination, you’ll see how the four buildings look like open books facing each other. By all means, explore this area because you’ll find a Wizard-of-Oz-looking building (all green and made of glass) housing the City of Fashion and Design, and when you’re done, it’s easy to hop over to Gare d’Austerlitz where you’ll be able to traverse to more exciting areas.

*We’re in no way a qualified French teacher, but here’s a quirky lesson and useless info to shower your friends with (despite their protests): a library and a librairie are not the same thing, they’re faux amis or fake friends. A librairie here is a bookstore.

Bakeries

Eric Kayser

Coffee shops

Restos

Museums + Monuments

Bib­lio­thèque François-Mitterand

Shopping

Man­ga Café V2

Food Markets

Marché Jeanne d’Arc

Place Jeanne d’Arc
Open: Thu — 7a to 1:30p, Sun — 7a to 2:30p

Marché Paris Rive Gauche

18 Rue Jean Anouilh
Open: Fri­days — 10a to 8p

Marché Salpêtrière

Place de la Salpêtrière
Open: Tue, Fri — 7a to 1:30p

Marché Vin­cent Auriol

Boule­vard Vin­cent Auri­ol
Open: Wed — 7a to 1:30p; Sat — 7a to 2:30p