Personal resolutions are nice but what about our wishes for the year ahead in our city? It’s already been an eventful start to 2024 with Macron’s latest cabinet reshuffle which swiftly inspired a slew of reactions that illustrated a genuine wish to have leaders with more relevant experience and connection to the people, and less progressive posturing. More actual progress, less lip service from out-of-touch elites.
That, in turn, inspired my own reflections: what do I want to see more and less of this year, particularly in Paris? And what do some of my friends and colleagues want to see, both in terms of the city itself and our socializing within it? Here’s what we’re thinking….
My two cents:
More bike lanes
Less complaining about the bike lanes. (Although we should still be able to complain about the lack of cycling etiquette. That remains a problem!!).
More well-crafted, small-batch meaningful goods
Less fast fashion and global chains. Why come to Paris to shop at Zara? Make it make sense.
More independent restaurants and shops with staying power
Less VC-backed restaurant groups and entrepreneurs who haven’t put together a cohesive business plan and stumbles right out of the gate. There are, sadly, too many to name that don’t launch with any ounce of preparedness.
Francesca Occhionero, artist and art director:
More bars with vinyls and dj sets for dancing! Paris has options for hardcore clubbing but not many for casual dancing/listening. I don’t feel like going to the end of the world in the middle of the night at this stage of my life, but I still love music and dancing!
Less (fewer) restaurants pretending to be spaces where vinyls are played and where there is room to dance or at least stand and float (Editor’s note: looking at you, Bambino).
More cafés or hotels lobbies where it’s possible to sit, work, and meet people. In many cafés, laptops are not allowed anymore and considering the rising price of a cup of coffee and the dying tradition of French cafés where people would write their novels, I think this is a bit of a pity!
Less drama around reservations at “it” restaurants. I believe the whole food scene should chill out. Paris has always been great in its offering of quality food. Why is bread making now considered a miracle? Why are we served 5 anchovies on bread and butter as if they were caviar? I think basic quality products that belong to France’s DNA have been “denatured” through marketing.
Jay Swanson, YouTuber & creator of Paris in My Pocket
More quality pizza (Dan Pearson to the rescue!).
Less whining about Parisian pizza perpetually at plateau (guilty!).
Cécilia Jourdan, founder Hello French
More queer & lesbian spaces
Less complaining :)
Alexandra Weinress, founder/cultural guide The Seen Paris
More of a return to materiality and technique in art; a renewed focus on the way things are made, and how it relates to us & the earth; emphasis on craftsmanship & sustainability.
Less soulless AI-generated art
More dialogues in historical museums with contemporary art (and more free admission to private art foundations, at least more often)
Less presence of influencers, selfies & photoshoots at exhibitions. Some people are actually trying to look at the work.
More of Margaux Brugvin's Instagram account (only for Francophones, for now). I'll do whatever she tells me to!
Less 30-second recap reels! I can't process flashes of information in subliminal message format.
Alison Eastaway, owner Cavewoman Wines and founder of Recognizd
More morning walks around the Buttes Chaumont
Less (fewer) late nights
More opening up that special bottle just because
Less waiting for the perfect moment
More small rituals
Less always chasing what's new (Editor’s note: apply EVERYWHERE)
More eye contact
Less scrolling
(Editor’s note: clearly applies to Parisian socializing which has similarly gone overly digital)
More everyday romance and wonderment
Less grand plans
More (relative) peace and quiet
Less roadworks
(hear, hear!)
Clémence Polès, photographer and founder Passerby
More conversations with strangers without ulterior motives
Less Franglais
More housing for the unhoused. The number of tents I’m seeing out in the city in below 0° weather is not humane
Less (fewer) broken vélibs
More Iranian restaurants rive droite
Less (fewer) small plates in restaurants (Editor’s note: YESSSSSS)
Less complaining about there being a strike and maybe more support
Constance Dovergne, writer Carte Blanche & ELLE France Lifestyle Editor-in-Chief
More knowledge, less opinions— I want exactly what Fran Lebowitz wants for the culture.
But on a more materialistic note….
More night trains departing from Paris stations and less self-service pianos in said stations.
(Editor’s note: LOL!)
Jon Bonné, author of The New French Wine
More: Wine service in East Paris restaurants returning to being an actual wine service — that is, offering me a physical wine list that serves as a bill of fare, versus the "Tell me who you are and I'll tell you what to drink" horseshit that's circulated for about a decade now. Don't get me wrong! I love when wine-loving restaurant people want to share what they love, and turn me on to new things. But for every person who does it well (hello, La Buvette and Furia!) there are five who are, let's say, meandering on their journey. Leave the gestalt-mining to Jung and Brillat-Savarin.
Less: Unsulfured Spanish wine that tastes like mouse droppings. Sure, the Olympics and all that, but this is the nexus of the greatest wine-producing culture on earth, and I'm all for France leaning into its strengths.
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What is YOUR Paris More / Less for 2024? Tell me in the comments !
This was so fun!
Less: "Pas possible!" More: "Oui, avec plaisir."
Fewer smokers hogging the "terrasse" seats at cafés. Less smoke blown in my face all over Paris. As for the bike lanes, they can be quite terrifying for pedestrians crossing a lane where there's two-way bike traffic.