High in the trees. That’s where Parisians dined in the 19th century on what today is Avenue de Robinson. This avenue echoes with the whimsical back-story of a suburb. This story might leave you wistfully wishing to turn back time.
Let’s talk about the Avenue de Robinson’s origin. It all began in 1848. A Parisian innkeeper named Joseph Guesquin stumbled upon huge chestnut trees near Le Plessis-Piquet. This village was situated at about 7 o’clock on the clockface of Paris. Guesquin drew inspiration from the 1812 adventure Swiss Family Robinson and Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe. He envisioned a restaurant in the trees’ leafy canopy. Wooden cabins would link staircases and ramps.
In the 19th century, the banlieues of Paris were unsullied farmland. They were dotted with small villages. Railways started replacing stagecoaches in the late 1850s. Parisians could easily escape the city’s confines. The countryside’s waterways lured boaters and picnickers to guinguettes. These establishments were traditionally near a river or canal. They served ample food and drinks. Lively music and dancing accompanied the experience. Guinguettes ranged from rough shanties to elaborate restaurants.
Instead of a watercourse, Guesquin built his dream guinguette in a grove of trees. He constructed three shady pavilions trellised with rambling roses. They sat in the branches of a 200-year-old chestnut tree. This tree stood on what is now the Avenue de Robinson. Customers enjoyed privacy in curtained quarters. Waiters sent up champagne and roast chicken in baskets. Ropes and pulleys hauled up these treats.
The most romantic place in the outskirts of Paris was aloft in an enormous chestnut tree. Les Guinguettes de Robinson was a unique and exotic summer adventure.
Guesquin’s first restaurant was named The Grand Robinson. It was instantly successful. Soon it was renamed the Vrai Arbre de Robinson or the True Tree of Robinson. Rue de Malabry was not lacking in giant chestnut trees. Competitors could build their own tree house bistros. At the height of its fame, there were more than 10 taverns. Over 200 gazebos stood in the trees of Plessis. The most famous dining destinations included The True Tree and The Great Tree. Others were The Tree of Rocks and The Great Saint-Éloi. You could also find The Fame of Fried Potatoes, The Hermitage, The Terrace Tree, and The Golden Snail.
Alexis Martin described Robinson as “one huge open-air restaurant.” He wrote this in his 1890 travel guide Les Etapes d’un Tourist en France. He noted it was quiet during the week but extraordinarily busy on Sundays. People feasted in all the trees. They drank on all the terraces. They danced on the lawns beneath all the arbors. People arrived with whetted appetites and songs on their lips. They came from Sceaux, Fontenay, and all surrounding areas. They traveled in charabancs, on horseback, by donkey, on foot, in long lines.
Before long, the village became such a popular Sunday destination. The district was officially renamed Plessis-Robinson in 1909.
Russia’s Tsar and Spain’s Queen Isabella graced the Grand Robinson with their presence. Many other celebrities dined there.
In the years after World War Two, the spirit of the guinguette faded. The Robinson tree house taverns shuttered one after the other. They slowly gave way to residential homes. Then in 1966, another investor breathed life into the old pavilions. Johnny Hallyday bought Vrai Arbre Robinson. He renovated it into a wild-West dream named Robinson Village. It was an American-style ranch with horses and a saloon.
The last tree top bar, Le Grand Arbre, closed in 1976. The trees in Plessis-Robinson have been left for the squirrels.
Today, as you stroll along Avenue de Robinson, imagine the laughter and music. Picture the waiters hauling baskets of champagne up to tree-top diners. Envision the romance of a bygone era. The avenue may now be a modern suburban street. But it still whispers tales of a time when dining among the leaves was the height of Parisian fancy.