The cafés around the Grande-Place and place Rihour are always buzzing with life. Rue de Paris has lots of tacky, loud, crushed bars
raging at all hours, while rue Basse and nearby place
Louise-de-Bettignies have some trendier spots. Bars are thick on the
ground in rues Solférino and Masséna, and attract a young crowd. Art
and music events are always worth checking up on - there's a
particularly lively jazz scene. Pick up a copy of the free weekly listings magazine , Sortir , from the tourist office, or look in the local paper, La Voix du Nord .
L'Angle Saxo
, 36 rue d'Angleterre (tel 03.20.06.15.06). Relaxed bar with good jazz
- and you can hear yourself speak. Drinks are pricier than the pubs.
Daily 9pm-2am, with concerts generally Thurs-Sun.
Bâteau Ivre
, 41 rue Lepelletier. Loud music ranging from house to soul in a
pleasant street in the old quarter. Mainly young crowd. Mon-Fri 3pm-2am, Sat 11am-2am.
Café au Bureau
, rue de Béthune. Done out with plenty of brass and dark woodwork, and
offering a hundred kinds of beer. Tables outside are crowded with young
things watching the parade.
Les Deux Zèbres , 57 rue Basse. Groovy stripy bar, with an intimate atmosphere, playing Eighties music. Daily 6pm-2am.
Father Moustache , 19 rue Masséna. In a street lined with bars, this is as good a place as any to join a mainly student crowd. Daily 9pm-2am.
L'Imaginaire , place Louise-de-Bettignies, next door to the Hôtel Treille . Arty young bar with paintings adorning the walls. Mon-Sat 10pm-2am.
Les Trois Brasseurs
, 22 place de la Gare. Dark, smoke-stained dining stalls surround
copper cauldrons in this genuine brasserie that brews its own beer.
Food is also served but it's the beer that's the main attraction.
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