Each year, tens of millions of tourists visit Paris for the Eiffel Tower and pastries, but startup founders and investors are drawn to Silicon Sentier, the historic neighbourhood at the heart of the French capital where la startup nation is truly made. In the small, windy streets of the second arrondissement, VCs and startup founders have established unofficial HQs in fancier bars and cafés for morning coffees, business lunches, and afterwork drinks.

The Hoxton (30-32 rue du Sentier) is the go-to pick for most VCs, with a bar and restaurant in an 18th-century building. Nearby, Hôtel des Grands Boulevards (17 boulevard Poissonnière) offers a courtyard bar and restaurant. Just next door to Pigment's HQ, Le Floor (42 rue Notre Dame des Victoires) is a casual neo-coffee shop for matcha lattes and avocado toast.

La Maison (2 rue des Mathurins), launched by Motier Ventures, provides a 1,800 sq metre space for portfolio companies with desks, a coffee shop, and events. Neon Noir (14 rue Le Peletier), created by ZML, Uma, and Drysdale Ventures, aims for a raw Berlin squat feel with invite-only hackathons.

Soho House (45 rue la Bruyère) offers an exclusive members-only experience. Station F (5 parvis Alan Turing), launched by Xavier Niel, hosts 1,000 startups including Hugging Face and Alan, plus regular events and the Big Mamma restaurant La Felicità.