I.O Café

you're on rue dupetit-thouars, which cuts through the 3rd arrondissement in a way that feels less touristic than the marais streets a few blocks south. i.o café sits at number 16, and it's the kind of spot that locals in this part of paris tend to be quietly proprietary about. the 3rd has that particular mix of design studios, quiet residential blocks, and the occasional galerie that makes you feel like you've landed somewhere the city is actually being lived in rather than performed. what you'll find here is a specialty café that takes its coffee seriously without making that seriousness the whole personality of the place. well regarded among the people who know this quarter. worth arriving before the lunch crowd thins out, when the street is at its best and a short black is the right thing to order.