A small, well-worn fixture of the Butte-aux-Cailles nightlife, Le Merle Moqueur made its name on flavoured rum: a long shelf of rhums arrangés steeped with vanilla, ginger, fruit, and spices, poured cheap to a packed, mostly young crowd. It is loud, cramped, and unpretentious — a student-and-local institution rather than a polished cocktail bar.
Reputedly the place where a young Édith Piaf once sang, it leans on its history lightly. Come early to get in, order a couple of the house rums, and let the street outside take over the rest of the evening.