this Paris canteen gradually eaten away by the work on Place Daumesnil

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Hollow rings like the trenches which have disfigured the terrace of his canteen. By his own admission, the director of La Planque is a tired restaurateur. Driven by headwinds since April 2024, the address in the 12th arrondissement of Paris is tottering. Between the deserted tables in his establishmentTristan Le Page notes the damage: “We suffered an operating loss of 40 to 50%”.

Posted, then, on the doorstep of the place, nestled a stone's throw from the Daumesnil metro station, he casts his clear gaze on the rows of barriers from Place Félix-Éboué. “There are always people forgotten, right? », he asks fatalistically.

Walled outdoor terrace

Act 1 of this descent into hell took place last April when waterproofing work start at Daumesnil station. “It was raining in the metro,” laughs the restaurateur. As a result, the ground is dug for the first time… right in front of the terrace.

An employee specifies in passing a detail that is not one: “We were able to install our ephemeral terrace for less time and on half the space. But we paid the same price,” she recalls.

Tristan Le Page continues, with supporting photos: “There was like a wall of barrierswith a very small access, on the right, to our address. The space was too narrow for strollers or people in wheelchairs and the flow of pedestrians mainly passed on the other side of the works. We no longer saw our slates and posters…” Vacating, the canteen will not be able to surf over the summer to rebuild itself.

“With the Olympic Games, everything was circumscribed at Bercy in the 12th,” complains the director. And added: “From now on, there is work on the square…” As a reminder, by January 2025, this major crossroads in the 12th arrondissement will be largely pedestrianized and vegetatedin line with what was done at Bastille and Nation, in particular.

Employees encouraged to go on leave

A vast development which includes three phases of workthe second of which began on the night of October 30 to 31 with, among other things, the implementation of a new traffic plan. This has also led to complications, due to a poorly thought out urban furniture and dangerous behavior by certain motorists.

A situation precisely documented in a YouTube video from the Altis Play account. In mid-November, however, this problem was corrected with the installation of reinforced concrete slidesas we were able to see on site.

Other collateral damage: deliveries. “We can always get supplies, but it’s more complicated,” confides Tristan Le Page. On the sidewalk next door, the new associates of the Au Métro Daumesnil institution want to be more philosophical. “It's Paris, there are works everywhere. And then you need what you need. People know us and they continue to come, even if we have perhaps lost a little on the evening service,” they concede.

For their part, the La Planque teams do not intend to stop there. “Currently, we are asking our employees touse up their leave… We are in the process of putting together a file to take steps with a lawyer and obtain compensation,” reveals the bitter director.

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