Le Bar a Bulles

by Margaret Magnus

Le Bar a Bulles is a small champagne and water bar in the middle of a women's clothing section on the first floor (that's the second floor in the US) of Galeries Lafayette. For those new to Paris, the Galeries Lafayette is a three-block department store in the ninth arrondissement in Paris that has become a destination stop on its own. The store's advertising is everywhere - on metro billboards, in the free city guide in the hotel room, special brochures at tourist information stops, etc. It's pervasive and its tagline says Galeries Lafayette is "the department store capital of fashion." And that includes fashionable food.

The Bulles bar serves water and champagne because they both have bubbles, hence the name Bulles. There are additional beverages, including soft drinks, beer, and espresso. Weary or overwhelmed shoppers can stop in for a quick pick-me up so they can continue through the 18 different floors of the Galleries.

Champagne is the main attraction, but there are still a wide variety of waters to choose from.  In September 2004, there were 22 unflavored waters on the menu from nine countries or specific geographic locations.

Before actually ordering any water, we asked the bartender for a recommendation. But nearly as we could tell, this was his first day and he didn't have any water recommendations.

The bartender went to the refrigerator (none of the waters were at room temperature meaning that there was still a learning curve here about serving fine waters) and started pulling out bottles of water and showing them to us. This was not a language problem; it reflected what was in stock.

We ordered St. Georges (France) at 2,50 Euros, a still water with a pure, clean taste and Selters (Germany) at 2,80 Euros that had a medium fizz. When those two bottles were finished, we asked for two more. The bartender went back to the refrigerator and starting pulling out more bottles to show us. We picked Montes at 2,80 Euros (Italy) and Chateldon 1650 (France) (not listed on the menu).

At Bulles, all the bottled waters were served in a clear, somewhat heavy water glass with the bottled water brand name Vittel stamped in red letters on the side. The advertising took away from the water drinking experience and seemed somehow inappropriate. It's like going into a wine bar and having all the wine glasses stamped with the name of a single wine producer in big letters on the side. Not part of the fine beverage experience.

However, we would recommend the bar as a place to sample waters not commonly found in the US.

Le Bar a Bulles at Galeries Lafayette
40 Blvd Haussmann (between Rues de la Chaussee-d'Antin and de Mogador)
75009 Paris, France
Metro: Chaussee-d'Antin-La Fayette, Opera, Trinite, Havre-Caumartin