Rue Mouffetard: the 5th Arrondissement's Market Street, Shops and Access

Rue Mouffetard, nicknamed "la Mouffe", is a sloping street about 650 metres long in the 5th arrondissement, in the heart of the Latin Quarter. It follows the line of a very old road of Roman origin and has kept its medieval layout. It is a lively shopping street of cafés, restaurants and fresh-food stalls, and takes an hour or two to walk.

Highlights

A sloping medieval street

From the top, near place de la Contrescarpe, down to Saint-Médard church, the street keeps its narrow, winding course, very different from the great 19th-century boulevards.

The lower street and its stalls

The lower section is full of cheesemongers, butchers, fishmongers, bakers and greengrocers, whose stalls spill onto the roadway at busy times.

Place de la Contrescarpe and Saint-Médard church

These two squares mark the ends of the street. Place de la Contrescarpe, opened in 1852, is lined with cafés; Saint-Médard church closes the street at the bottom.

Nearby

See on the map →

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