Café de la Bourse, directly opposite the Arena, has a sweeping terrace facing the Roman amphitheatre — there is no better place in Nîmes for a coffee or an apéritif with a view. The interior is high-ceilinged and stately, in the way of grand provincial brasseries; the terrace is what people come for.
Food is brasserie-standard and unexciting, but a drink in this spot at sundown, with the Arena going gold in the evening light, is part of the experience of Nîmes.