“Daron” is French slang for “father,” but there’s nothing fatherly or fusty about La Cave du Daron, which at night becomes a casual and intimate wine bar with a healthy cast of loyal habitués. On most evenings gregarious proprietor Jean-Julien Ricard offers a simple menu of charcuterie, cheeses, and conserves to complement his idiosyncratic and undogmatic wine selection, which encompasses everything from vogue-ish natural wine to Hungarian demi-secs to the conventional classics of the Rhône. Corkage is the east-Paris standard 7€, but the glass-pour selections are often unusual and worth exploring. Ricard also enlivens his bar’s offerings with semi-frequent guest-chef evenings: past collaborators have included Yam Tcha’s Adeline Grattard, and Maori Murota of Le Verre Volé Sur Mer.
Practical information
Address: 140 avenue Parmentier, 75011
Nearest transport: Goncourt (10)
Hours: Closed Sunday night and Monday morning
Telephone: 01 48 06 21 84
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Reviews of interest
Not Drinking Poison in Paris (2015) “La Cave du Daron [is] the block’s only option for fine wine consumption without the attendant obligation of expensive cuisine. Modest and welcoming, [owner Jean-Julien] Ricard is well-suited to the role he’s found, as the Goncourt local’s favorite low-key foil to the brouhaha across the street.”
Le Bon Bon (2012) Minuscule petite cave cachée, elle recèle pourtant des surprises alléchantes, bien loin de la simple promesse de bouteille/planche de charcut’ fromages. Entre apéros de nanas et découvertes culinaires, cette cave n’a vraiment rien à voir avec toutes ses copines.