France fears death of village life as cafés call last orders
Threatened by new habits and a shrinking rural population, a national institution is fighting for survival
Cafe Terrace on Rue Vieille du Temple. Photograph: Corbis
As he drives through the hills and fields of the Ardennes, José Hody points out the landmarks of a devastated landscape. There’s Café de la Paix, on the brink of bankruptcy; there’s Le Malibou, which has already shut down. In the town of Sedan, Hody, who hires out games to 100 local establishments, indicates La Taverne, now converted into a florist, and Quai 32, which is on the point of closure.
We move on to Vendresse, a village of 550 inhabitants surrounded by muddy fields and the overflowing Meuse river. We visit the last remaining café – once there were five – with the last remaining darts board, a menu du jour at £10, pastis and worn Johnny Hallyday tapes. The table football game, one of scores that Hody once supplied to local businesses, has already gone.
‘We are going to have to sell up and, as there are no buyers, that’s it for the café,’ said Ingrid Meurquin, the patronne of Le Donjon for the past eight years. ‘It’s sad for us and sad for the village.’
All over France it is the same story. Changing social habits, rural depopulation, the recently introduced ban on smoking, strict laws prohibiting fruit machines, inflation, static salaries and the economic crisis are forcing thousands of cafés and bars to the wall.