HotelChatter

Le Plan
The layout is simple but varied. Directly across from the lobby is a small bar area with a raised communal table whose surface projects several TV screens, each showing a different channel…you know, just in case your date turns out to be a bore and you decide to catch up on the latest rugby match.

Continue towards the back of the building and pass through a casual seating area with low-lying coffee tables, assorted armchairs and sofas, before you get to the main dining room with still more sofas, plain wooden communal tables, and a raised marble bar that is spotlighted from above so you can get a good view of the demoiselle to whom you’ve just sent that framboise Bellini.

At the very back is a little food bar where you can enjoy your 20-euro breakfast buffet, though if you’re a little savvy in the morning (or at the very least not too hungover), you can just order a breadbasket and a café au lait for the grand total of 6 euros.

À La Carte
During our brief perusal of the menu, the main draw did not actually seem to be the simple (some might say unremarkable) food. The dishes were mainly a hodgepodge of French dishes you’d find at most local brasseries, though with a little flair here and there.

The main attraction, however, is the cocktail menu, with concoctions like the Cowboy ’20 with Hendrick’s Gin, champagne, lemon juice, fresh mint and ginger; though you’ll also imbibe many potables you’d find at most upscale clubs in the U.S. The 12-14 euro prices (and 8 euros for a Heineken. A Heineken!) are a little steep, but this is Paris.

Dinner Entertainment
There’s absolutely no reason to be bored during a meal at Mama Shelter. There is simply too much to see and do.

For music aficionados, there is a DJ, and even live music on the weekends. Smokers can take frequent breaks on the outdoor terrace that runs the length of the restaurant. Young couples in love can take sickeningly saccharine photos at the iMac photo booth, then have them projected to the video screens throughout the restaurant as a testament of their romance. Le puke.

Fratboys and fútbol fanatics will find distraction at the eight-player (yes, eight) foosball table. News junkies can check in on the latest headline tickertapes at many of the TV monitors, and if you just get stuck at the table with nothing to do, simply gaze upward to read a few vapid ruminations and quotes about love on the chalk-graffiti-ed ceiling.

Community
Picking up on a trend that is gaining momentum in the U.S., the restaurant and bar areas also have several communal tables where, if you see a free seat, you should feel free to assieds-toi.

Final Tally
Adequate dishes, swinging scene, plenty to admire, and lots to amuse. Does it all justify the hefty price tag? Probably not. But you’ll be having too much fun to care.