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The Assignment: Research Paris Water Bars The assignment was to do market research in Paris. My job was to visit the Paris water bars listed at FineWaters (TM) and report back. How tough can that be? As it turns out, it's not that easy. As a novice fine bottled water drinker, I was a little hesitant and unsure, and did not know what I was looking for or what to ask for. Our first stop was Le Bar a Bulles, 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. We Stop in for a Little Bubbly - Water, That Is 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. My husband Sam and I stopped in around 11:00 a.m. to test a few waters before lunch. They had seating for about a dozen people, and it was one-fourth full when we arrived. As it got closer to lunchtime, a few more people stopped by. We noticed that we were the only ones ordering water. Champagne was the main attraction, but there were still a wide variety of waters to choose from. Of the display space on the bar's only wall, 80% was devoted to champagne, the rest to water displaying bottled water. We entered the bar, sat at the counter, and ordered water. Of course, it is a little more complicated than that because there were 22 unflavored waters on the menu from nine countries or specific geographic locations. What to Order? My husband and I looked at each other, looked at the menu, shrugged our shoulders, and semi-randomly picked a couple of waters. Before actually ordering, 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. We then pointed to the menu to place our order. Unfortunately, our French only includes some basic words, such as eau, minerale and naturelle, with eau being "water" and the other words similar to their English versions. 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 Try Four Waters and Get a Little Waterlogged 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. We drank the water and wondered what we were supposed to feel or taste or how to define our fine waters experience. 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 randomly picked Montes at 2,80 Euros (Italy) and Chateldon 1650 (France) (not listed on the menu). I do not remember the Montes and did not seem to make any notes on its taste or mouthfeel. The Chateldon 1650 turned out, however, to be my favorite of the four. My notes call it a "light, sparkling water." In Chateldon 1650, the 1650 stands for the year the water was first bottled and made available. According to the Food Reference Website, "Europeans long ago discovered the health giving properties of mineral waters... Back in 1654, the court physician of Versailles presented a bottle of Chatledon from Auvergne to Louis XIV to cure his gout and other assorted illnesses largely attributed to gourmandise and gluttony." 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. I have to say that 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. Feeling only slightly waterlogged, we paid up and scurried to our next stop, lunch at Taillevent. Water Bars 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 Fine Waters St. Georges (France) Chateldon 1650 (France) References "Bottled Water - A Profit Center for Restaurants" by Hrayr Berberoglu from the Food Reference Website.
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