Le Select

Le Select
Name	Le Select
Caption	Exterior facade of Le Select on Rue Delambre
Established	1925
City	Paris
Country	France
Cuisine	French bistro

Le Select

Le Select is a historic Parisian brasserie founded in 1925 in the Montparnasse district of Paris, France. It became a focal point for expatriate and avant-garde communities during the interwar period and retained prominence through the postwar decades as a meeting place for artists, writers, and intellectuals. The establishment is noted for its traditional bistro cuisine, tiled interior, and continuity as a social hub in the Latin Quarter and Montparnasse cultural scene.

History

Le Select opened during the Roaring Twenties, a period marked by rapid cultural exchange among expatriates in Paris including figures associated with the Lost Generation such as Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein, and Ezra Pound. Its founding coincided with the flourishing of nearby studios and salons tied to movements like Cubism, Surrealism, and Dada, which attracted artists connected to Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, and Amedeo Modigliani. In the 1930s the brasserie continued as a meeting point for writers and critics who followed the trajectories of Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, and Albert Camus. During World War II the Montparnasse quarter experienced occupation-era constraints that affected many establishments frequented by members of the French Resistance and émigré intellectuals; after 1944 Le Select resumed its role in the reconstitution of Parisian cultural life alongside venues associated with Jean Cocteau and Samuel Beckett. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s it hosted conversations that intersected with developments in Existentialism, Abstract Expressionism, and the Beat movement around figures like Jack Kerouac. From the late 20th century into the 21st, Le Select has been referenced in guidebooks alongside institutions such as Le Dôme Café, La Rotonde, and Le Café de Flore for its continuity amid urban change.

Architecture and Layout

The interior displays characteristic features of early 20th-century Parisian brasseries with elements comparable to contemporaneous interiors at establishments like Brasserie Lipp and La Coupole. The space includes cream-painted woodwork, a zinc-topped bar, marble-tiled flooring, and mirrored backwalls that echo design tendencies observable in the Belle Époque and Art Deco periods linked to architects influenced by Hector Guimard and designers associated with Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann. The layout organizes long banquettes, small marble tables, and bentwood chairs into a compact dining room that opens onto a narrow façade facing Rue Delambre, producing sightlines similar to those described for cafés in accounts of Montparnasse by travel writers and historians. Lighting fixtures and signage show conservation and periodic restoration consistent with preservation practices used for historic commercial interiors recognized by municipal inventories in Paris.

Cuisine and Menu

Le Select’s menu emphasizes classic French bistro dishes and traditional brasserie fare in the lineage of culinary customs associated with chefs referenced in the literature of French cuisine such as Auguste Escoffier and the bistro repertoire that informed later chefs like Paul Bocuse and Alain Ducasse. Typical offerings include rotisserie meats, steak frites, coq au vin, seasonal salads, pâtés, and desserts like crème brûlée and tarte Tatin; cheese selections often feature staples from appellations celebrated by institutions such as the Institut National de l'Origine et de la Qualité. The wine list traditionally contains selections from producers in regions represented by appellations like Bordeaux, Burgundy, Loire Valley, and Champagne, reflecting sommelier conventions present in Parisian brasseries. Menu presentation and service follow the standards observed in establishments noted by travel guides and gastronomic critics including those connected to Gault Millau and Michelin commentary.

Cultural Significance

Le Select occupies a place in narratives about 20th-century artistic and literary life in Paris, frequently mentioned alongside cultural nodes such as Montparnasse Cemetery, Musée Picasso, Musée d'Orsay, and performance venues near Théâtre de la Gaîté-Montparnasse. It contributed to the sociability that fostered collaborations and rivalries among painters, poets, playwrights, and critics including Maurice Chevalier, Sergei Diaghilev, and playwrights associated with Comédie-Française repertoires. The brasserie appears in memoirs, biographies, and oral histories that chart networks connecting expatriate communities with domestic French artistic institutions such as Académie des Beaux-Arts and periodicals like La Nouvelle Revue Française. As a cultural landmark it features in walking tours and scholarly studies of urban modernity that also treat nearby sites like Cimetière du Montparnasse, Salon d'Automne, and the ateliers of Romain Coolus.

Notable Patrons and Events

Over decades, the café hosted an array of patrons and events linking it to personalities from literature, visual arts, and film including Ernest Hemingway, Pablo Picasso, Man Ray, Samuel Beckett, and Jean-Paul Sartre. The site has been the backdrop for literary readings, informal salons, and press gatherings reminiscent of assemblies convened by figures such as Gustave Flaubert in earlier eras and contemporaneous with journalistic activity in outlets like Les Lettres Françaises and Cahiers du Cinéma. Film shoots and photographic sessions have referenced the brasserie’s interior in projects associated with directors and photographers tied to the Parisian scene, such as François Truffaut and Helen Levitt. Commemorative events and anniversaries often draw cultural institutions and municipal representatives linked to Mairie de Paris programming.

Ownership and Management

Ownership and management of the café have passed through private hands, family proprietors, and hospitality professionals who operate within the commercial frameworks observed by Parisian restaurateurs and associations such as Syndicat National de l'Hôtellerie Restauratrice. Managers have navigated regulatory environments administered by local authorities including the Préfecture de Police de Paris and municipal licensing processes monitored by Direction Générale des Entreprises. Renovations and business strategies have balanced heritage conservation approaches similar to those promoted by Monuments Historiques listings and private operators who collaborate with cultural heritage consultants and hospitality groups active in the Île-de-France region.

Category:Restaurants in Paris