Café de la Table Ronde

Café de la Table Ronde, founded in 1739, is one of the oldest literary cafés in France, after Procope in Paris. Discover delicious regional and traditional specialities
History of the Café de la Table Ronde


On September 14, 1734, a man named Pierre Caudet or Code set up a confectionery store in rue Derrière-Saint-André, now rue d'Agier, in the part of the building belonging to Alexandre Morard, sieur de la Bayette, located at the corner of the said street and place Saint-André. His neighbor was François Dagonneau, watchmaker, who occupied the store facing the square.

In 1739, when Dagonneau had ceased trading, Caudet rented the premises and its outbuildings to open a café. This was the origin of the Café de la Table Ronde. Thanks to its proximity to the Palais de Justice, the café soon became a popular meeting place for litigants and lawyers.

Caudet retired from business in 1776 and sold his business to Antoine Joseph Flandrin. Flandrin was married to Marie Bourdonnait Gilbert, with whom he had four children. He was assisted in serving his numerous customers by a maid. Legend has it that, in 1787, this maid was Catherine Amour or Lamour, mistress of a sergeant in the Royal Marine Regiment, Charles Bernadotte, later Baron d'Empire and King of Sweden, of whom she had a daughter, born on August 4, 1789, who lived only 28 days.
When the Parlement du Dauphiné began its fight against royal power, Flandrin, whose clientele consisted mainly of Clercs de la basoche, could do no less than support their protests. Already imbued with the revolutionary spirit, he missed no opportunity to make his feelings known