Code name: Hidden bars

Whether you've partied in all the bars in your repertoire or have no experience in the matter at all, only one question remains: Which (new) bar to visit?

Instead of focusing your attention on one of the must-see addresses that make the rounds on the Internet, why not spice things up by choosing an atypical place like a hidden bar or "speakeasy"? In complete confidentiality, secret worlds await you! Provided, of course, you can find them!

1. A hidden bar? What a concept!

"Clandestine," "hidden," "secret" - a mysterious aura hovers over these establishments where you can quench your thirst. Normal, that's the desired effect. The more discreet, the more concealed, the more exclusive and the better. And by the way, the more we love it!

The concept of these bars, unlike the others, draws its inspiration from American prohibition, between 1920 and 1933 at the federal level, and from the 1850s in certain states. During this period, an amendment to the United States Constitution prohibited the manufacture, transport and sale of alcoholic beverages. A way for Woodrow Wilson's conservative government to curb the rising alcohol consumption of Americans after the Civil War. Which, as a reminder, was fought for the abolition of slavery.

However, forbidding is a roundabout way of encouraging. And all the ways to break the law were found. While the poorest populations started distilling their spirits, the bourgeois class developed an entire network of clandestine bars across the country. In a word: "speakeasies." Which once translated gives "speak softly." Prohibition requires if you want to order alcohol without attracting attention.

If prohibition ruled for good, managing to reduce alcoholism, it also generated evil during its 10 years of existence. In particular public corruption, unemployment and violence. Lots of violence. So much so that we observed a lightning rise in organized crime.

For the two presidential candidates at the time, Franklin Roosevelt and Herbert Hoover, this was too much. We must put an end to all this disorder. Once elected, Roosevelt repealed the 18th amendment, that of prohibition, in April 1933.

Although it is no longer necessary to hide to drink alcohol, the end of "speakeasies" never really sounded. Their history has crossed the years and their essence is even updated 100 years later. In New York or Chicago, some of them are still active. This is the case of Simon's or Chumley's.

The historical "speakeasies" phenomenon has so marked minds that today we can find replicas of these clandestine bars almost everywhere on the planet. Starting with France! They supposedly landed in the Hexagon, and more precisely in the 3rd arrondissement of Paris, in 2011.

After the capital, it was the other major cities of France that got into it. Marseille, Lille, Aix-en-Provence, hidden bars are everywhere. And we're certainly not going to complain about it!

2. New generation saloons

What's fun about "speakeasies" is the sweet privilege it gives to those who manage to unmask them. Something easier said than done if you listen to the insiders.

In principle, all tracks to locate these bars in the public environment are voluntarily scrambled. To do this, the sign is missing and the address, worse, is not even revealed. Word of mouth is then one of the best means of communication to know them and then set foot there.

If in most cases, you just have to go to the back room of a restaurant to access these enigmatic places, sometimes their quest is like a real treasure hunt. In the basement of a grocery store, at the back of a laundromat or a cold room, unlikely hideouts are available. You have to be both very attentive and curious to detect an unexpected bar behind a dive.

To be honest, the success of hidden bars goes beyond their concealed access. As long as you haven't crossed their entrance threshold, you're far from having seen everything.

As a real trendy spot, secret bars take care of their interior appearance. Whatever the desired style, the decoration is usually very well done. The retro touch of the 20s, period of American prohibition, is among the favorite atmospheres of these atypical places. Sometimes, the madness goes even a little further with pirate, pharmacy, exotic lands decors, etc.

But in all this story of looks, we would almost forget the essential: having a drink! Apart from traditional pints of beer and "classic" glasses of spirits, it's cocktails that seduce consumers the most. Their preparation, called mixology, is an art. And their tasting is an invitation to a change of scenery. On these words, no need to say more.

Abracadabra, here are 12 "made in France" hidden bars to test urgently!

Le Candelaria: A taste of Mexico

• Address: 52 Rue de Saintonge, 75003 Paris
• Contact: 09.50.84.19.67/ in**@**************is.com
• Opening hours and days: Every day, from 6pm to 2am
• Reservation required: No

Le Lavomatic: The mini, mini pop loft

• Address: 30 Rue René Boulanger, 75010 Paris
• Contact: co*****@*******ic.paris
• Opening hours and days: From 6pm to 1am (Tuesday and Wednesday) and from 6pm to 2am (Thursday to Saturday)
• Reservation required: No

Le Carry Nation: Get back to prohibition

• Address: Only given by email (with access code) upon reservation
• Contact: 09 50 26 01 66/ in**@**************is.com
• Opening hours and days: Tuesday to Saturday, from 7pm to 2am
• Reservation required: Yes

Le Passage: Intimate boudoir style

Photo Bar le Passage Facebook Page

• Address: 8 Rue du Plâtre, 69001 Lyon
• Contact: 07 87 75 16 79/ in**@***********on.com/ ba**********@***il.com
• Opening hours and days: From 7pm to 1am (Tuesday and Wednesday) and from 7pm to 3am (Thursday to Saturday)
• Reservation required: No

La Baignoire: "Peaky Blinders" invitation

• Address: 11 Rue des 3 Rois, 69007 Lyon
• Contact: 06 46 85 82 54/ in**@***********on.com
• Opening hours and days: Tuesday to Sunday, from 6pm to 1am
• Reservation required: No

Le Symbiose Cocktail Bar: That little something timeless

• Address: 4 Quai des Chartrons, 33000 Bordeaux
• Contact: 05 56 23 67 15/co*****@***************ux.fr
• Opening hours and days: Tuesday to Saturday, from 7pm to 1am
• Reservation required: No, but recommended

L'Agence: Back to the Roaring Twenties

Photo L'Agence Toulouse Facebook page

• Address: 26 Rue du Languedoc, 31000 Toulouse
• Contact: in**@*************se.com
• Opening hours and days: Tuesday to Saturday, from 6pm to 2am
• Reservation required: No, but recommended

Hanky Panky: So british

• Address: 4 Pl. Louise de Bettignies, 59800 Lille
• Contact: 03 20 43 22 82/ he***@************up.com
• Opening hours and days: Thursday to Saturday, from 7pm to 10:30pm
• Reservation required: No

Le Speakeasy: The pirates' hideout

Photo Speakeasy Bar Rennes Facebook page

• Address: 32 Rue Jean Marie Duhamel, 35000 Rennes
• Contact: 06 32 64 18 67/ co*****@************ar.com
• Opening hours: Thursday to Saturday, from 7pm to 1am
• Reservation required: No

L'Apothicaire: Place for miracle remedies

• Address: 8 Rue du Pila St Gély, 34000 Montpellier
• Contact: 06 32 64 18 67/ co*****@************ar.com
• Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday, from 7pm to 1am
• Reservation required: No, but recommended

La Cocina Negra: In exotic depths

• Address: 25 Rue des Magnans, 13100 Aix-en-Provence
• Contact: 06 66 65 17 22
• Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday, from 10pm to 2am
• Reservation required: No, but recommended

La Mercerie: "Mum's the word!"

Photo La Mercerie Facebook page

• Address: Quai Perrière, 38000 Grenoble
• Contact: 04 56 00 85 41/ co*****@************ar.fr.
• Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday, from 6pm to 1am
• Reservation required: Yes