Paribar, a traditional bohemian stronghold in downtown São Paulo, closes its doors

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Paribar, the historic address of São Paulo’s bohemia, will close its doors. The last day of operation will be at lunch on Monday, the 26th.

Located in Dom José Gaspar square, in the center of São Paulo, and considered the first place to place tables and chairs on the sidewalk, the bar had been run by Luiz Campiglia for 17 years. There are several reasons for the closure, says the businessman, but the main one is the current violence in the region.

“The sidewalk is part of Paribar’s DNA. Not being able to put tables on the street kills the business,” he says.

Paribar closes its doors after pioneering the current movement of bars and restaurants that emerged later around Copan and Rua Major Sertório. “We were one of the first to arrive, in 2005, and we saw a whole flowering. I am very sad to see the current abandonment of the region”, says Campiglia.

But the bar comes from much earlier. Opened in 1949 behind the Mário de Andrade Library, the address was frequented by some representatives of the modernist movement, such as Tarsila do Amaral, Oswald de Andrade and Sérgio Milliet.

The place closed its doors for the first time in 1983, until in 2005 it was reopened under the command of Campiglia, but with another name and with a café-restaurant feel. In 2010, the bohemian stronghold was renamed Paribar and sought to regain the aura of before.

The history of downtown São Paulo and Paribar itself, with its distinguished customers, served as inspiration for Campiglia to create a new menu for the restaurant, which even retrieves ingredients from the Jesuit era.

The bar, which served as a restaurant at lunchtime, in the afternoon entertained those who stayed in the square with music — the parties that took over the square, such as Selvagem, became famous. Street events and the history of São Paulo’s food are things the entrepreneur will take with him, he says.

Regarding future plans, he confesses that he is still “phobic” about any new business for now, but says that he will continue to study the importance of food in the construction of the city and projects that involve food.

For those who want to say goodbye, the last toast is scheduled for Monday.

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