Coronavirus: Parisians tuck into coffee and croissants again as cafes re-open

French cafes and restaurants were allowed to start serving customers in outside areas on Wednesday, ending a six month shutdown that was mandated by the government to try to contain the spread of the virus.

For Parisian Elie Ayache the world was a little closer to normal on Wednesday after the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic: he was back at his favourite cafe drinking coffee and eating a croissant.

A waiter serves customers on the reopened Les Deux Magot cafe terrace in Paris, France, on Wednesday, May 19, 2021. Europe is waking up from the pandemic with cafes in Paris, gelato vendors in Rome and beer gardens in Bavaria reopening, a major test for the region's recovery in health and economic terms. (Bloomberg)

French cafes and restaurants were allowed to start serving customers in outside areas on Wednesday, ending a six month shutdown that was mandated by the government to try to contain the spread of the virus.

"I was impatient to get back to my life, and to the person that I was before," said Ayache, as he sat on the terrace outside Les Deux Magots, a Paris cafe that was once a hangout for Ernest Hemingway and other literary celebrities.

The global pandemic has forced the closure of hospitality venues around the world, but in France, the nation that invented haute cuisine, the shutdown was felt especially keenly.

French people spend more time eating or drinking than citizens in any other developed nation, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, and eating out is viewed as part of the social fabric.

"I feel at home because I know the place, I know the people," he said, his laptop open on the table in front of him.

His routine was not completely back to normal. His favourite spot is inside the cafe -- still off bounds because of COVID-19 restrictions -- and he said the terrace was a little chilly.

"But things are going to come back, bit by bit, and I'm very happy," he said.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.