Les Deux Magots

Les Deux Magots is a historic café and restaurant at Place Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris’s sixth arrondissement. It is one of the best-known establishments associated with the cultural life of Saint-Germain-des-Prés and has long been compared with the nearby Café de Flore. The venue’s reputation rests on a combination of location, continuity, visual identity, and association with writers, philosophers, artists, and other intellectuals. The name originated with a nineteenth-century shop rather than with the café itself. A fabric and novelty business at 23 Rue de Buci adopted the name Les Deux Magots from a popular play, Les Deux Magots de la Chine. The expression magot referred to a stocky Far Eastern figurine. The shop moved to the present Place Saint-Germain-des-Prés location in 1873 and retained its name when it became a café and liquor establishment in 1884. Two surviving statues representing Chinese mandarins, magicians, or alchemists remain central visual symbols of the interior and explain much of the venue’s distinctive identity. The business was close to bankruptcy when Auguste Boulay acquired it in 1914. Under the Boulay family, the establishment developed and preserved the character that later made it famous. Glass walls added by Boulay’s son brought more light into the premises while maintaining the traditional setting. During the twentieth century, Les Deux Magots became associated with Surrealist artists and with the intellectual milieu of postwar Paris. Its reported patrons have included Simone de Beauvoir, Jean-Paul Sartre, Ernest Hemingway, Albert Camus, Pablo Picasso, James Joyce, Bertolt Brecht, Julia Child, James Baldwin, Chester Himes, and Richard Wright. These associations helped turn the café into a cultural landmark rather than merely a place to eat and drink. The café’s literary role is reinforced by the Prix des Deux Magots, a French literary prize awarded annually since 1933 to a novel. The prize connects the operating business with the French literary world and extends the brand’s identity beyond food service. Les Deux Magots has also appeared in novels, films, television programs, music, photography, painting, and other cultural works, further strengthening its international recognition. Today, Les Deux Magots operates as a café and restaurant serving beverages, pastries, and French-style food in a setting marketed through historical atmosphere and Saint-Germain-des-Prés heritage. It is both a working Parisian venue and a major tourist destination. A study led by the café in 2016 reportedly found that international visitors represented 60 percent of its clientele, prompting efforts to reconnect with local Parisian customers. In 2017, Catherine Mathivat and her cousin Jacques Vergnaud worked on a redesign intended to reclaim more of the café’s Parisian clientele while preserving its established identity. The brand has also pursued international development. A Tokyo location opened in 1989, followed by locations in Riyadh and São Paulo in 2023. Further expansion has been discussed for Cape Town, Prague, London, and Guangzhou. The international locations extend the Les Deux Magots name beyond Paris, although the Saint-Germain-des-Prés café remains the core of its historical and commercial identity.

Les Deux Magots began as a fabric and novelty shop at 23 Rue de Buci. The business took its name from the nineteenth-century play Les Deux Magots de la Chine, with magot referring to a stocky Far Eastern figurine. In 1873, the shop moved to the present site at Place Saint-Germain-des-Prés. It became a café and liquor establishment in 1884 but retained the established name. The two figurines associated with the former shop remained in the premises and became the café’s defining visual emblems. The establishment faced serious financial difficulty before Auguste Boulay purchased it in 1914. Boulay’s family subsequently maintained and developed the business. His son installed glass walls that increased the amount of daylight entering the café, an architectural change that modernized the space without eliminating its traditional character. The Boulay family’s continued involvement helped preserve a strong sense of institutional continuity. During the twentieth century, Les Deux Magots became one of the most recognizable meeting places in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés cultural quarter. Surrealist artists and other intellectuals were among its patrons, and the café became associated with writers and philosophers including Simone de Beauvoir, Jean-Paul Sartre, Ernest Hemingway, Albert Camus, Pablo Picasso, James Joyce, and Bertolt Brecht. American writers and cultural figures such as James Baldwin, Chester Himes, Richard Wright, and Julia Child have also been identified with the venue. These associations made the café a symbol of Parisian intellectual life, although its later popularity also transformed it into a major destination for visitors. The Prix des Deux Magots has been awarded to a French novel every year since 1933. The prize gives the brand an enduring institutional connection to literature and distinguishes it from a conventional historic restaurant. Les Deux Magots has also been represented in novels, films, television, music, photography, and painting. Its cultural afterlife has included appearances or references in works associated with Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, Abha Dawesar, Katherine Neville, Leonardo Padura, China Miéville, Jean Eustache, and other creators. Catherine Mathivat, a great-great-granddaughter of Auguste Boulay, began working at the café in 1993. She assumed control after her father’s death in 2012, continuing the family connection to the business. In 2016, the café participated in research concerning its clientele, which reportedly found that international tourists represented 60 percent of visitors. The finding encouraged a strategic effort to recover a stronger local Parisian customer base. In 2017, Mathivat worked with her cousin Jacques Vergnaud on a redesign intended to balance heritage, contemporary service, and local relevance. Les Deux Magots subsequently developed an international footprint. A Tokyo café opened in 1989, while locations in Riyadh and São Paulo opened in 2023. Plans have been discussed for additional sites in Cape Town, Prague, London, and Guangzhou. The expansion treats the name as a transferable heritage hospitality brand, but the original Paris venue remains its principal cultural asset. Les Deux Magots is therefore best understood as both an active café-restaurant business and a heritage brand whose value derives from place, historical continuity, literary associations, and recognizable symbols.

• 2023

  Riyadh and São Paulo locations open

  [1]Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org

  The brand adds locations in Riyadh and São Paulo as part of its international expansion.

• 2017

  Redesign targets Parisian customers

  [1]Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org

  Catherine Mathivat and Jacques Vergnaud collaborate on a redesign intended to restore stronger local appeal while retaining the café’s heritage.

• 2016

  Clientele study highlights international tourism

  [1]Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org

  A study associated with the café reports that 60 percent of its clientele are international tourists.

• 2012

  Catherine Mathivat takes control

  [1]Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org

  Mathivat takes over the business following her father’s death.

• 1993

  Catherine Mathivat begins working at the café

  [1]Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org

  Catherine Mathivat, a descendant of Auguste Boulay, starts working at Les Deux Magots.

• 1989

  Tokyo location opens

  [1]Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org

  Les Deux Magots opens an international café in Tokyo, the first overseas expansion identified in the reference material.

• 1933

  The Prix des Deux Magots begins

  [1]Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org

  The café’s literary prize is established and begins recognizing French novels on an annual basis.

• 1914

  Auguste Boulay acquires the business

  [1]Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org

  Auguste Boulay buys the establishment when it is reportedly close to bankruptcy, beginning a long family association with the café.

• 1884

  The shop becomes a café and liquor establishment

  [1]Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org

  The business changes from a fabric and novelty shop into a café and liquoriste while retaining its original name and statues.

• 1873

  The business moves to Place Saint-Germain-des-Prés

  [1]Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org

  The shop carrying the Les Deux Magots name relocates from Rue de Buci to the site where the café operates today.

A premium heritage café and restaurant positioned around Parisian cultural history, literary associations, artistic atmosphere, and Saint-Germain-des-Prés authenticity.

• Beverage

  Coffee

  Coffee is a core part of the Les Deux Magots café experience. It is served in the historic Saint-Germain-des-Prés setting, where the beverage functions not only as a menu item but also as part of the brand’s traditional Parisian café ritual.

• Beverage

  Hot chocolate

  Hot chocolate is one of the café’s recognizable offerings and contributes to its positioning as a destination for leisurely drinks in a historic interior. The offering is associated with the venue’s traditional café service rather than with a separately branded packaged product.

• Food service

  French-style café and restaurant menu

  Les Deux Magots operates as a café and restaurant, serving French-style meals, pastries, desserts, and beverages. The menu supports all-day hospitality and complements the venue’s broader identity as a place for conversation, sightseeing, and cultural tourism.

• Literary institution · 1933

  Prix des Deux Magots

  The Prix des Deux Magots is an annual French literary prize awarded to a novel. Established in 1933, it is a major non-food expression of the brand and reinforces the café’s long-standing connection with writers and literary culture.

• 2017Parisian customer reconnection and café redesign

  France

  Following research showing a large proportion of international tourists among its clientele, Les Deux Magots pursued a redesign led by Catherine Mathivat and Jacques Vergnaud. The effort aimed to preserve the historic identity of the Saint-Germain-des-Prés venue while making it more attractive to Parisian customers.

  Outcome. The redesign was presented as an effort to rebalance the café’s tourist appeal with its local Parisian identity.

  Source

• 2023

  Expansion into Riyadh and São PauloStrategy

  Background

  After the earlier Tokyo expansion, the brand continued to develop an international network using the identity of the Paris original.

  Action taken

  Les Deux Magots opened locations in Riyadh and São Paulo.

  Aftermath

  The openings broadened the brand’s geographic reach, with additional locations discussed for several other international cities.

  Source

• 2017

  Redesign and local-market repositioningStrategy

  Background

  A 2016 study associated with the café reported that international tourists made up 60 percent of clientele, creating a strategic need to strengthen local relevance.

  Action taken

  Catherine Mathivat partnered with Jacques Vergnaud on a redesign intended to reclaim Parisian clientele.

  Aftermath

  The initiative sought to balance the café’s status as a global tourist landmark with its traditional role in Parisian cultural life.

  Source

• 1989

  International expansion begins with TokyoStrategy

  Background

  The Paris café’s historical identity was extended to an overseas market through the opening of a Tokyo location.

  Action taken

  Les Deux Magots opened a café in Tokyo.

  Aftermath

  Tokyo became the first identified international outpost of the brand and established a precedent for later overseas locations.

  Source

1. 1Les Deux Magotsen.wikipedia.org