Candelaria opened in 2011 in a small Marais storefront. The front operates as a working taqueria — fresh tortillas, four taco options, mezcal flights. Walk through the kitchen, push the door at the back, and you enter a 30-seat cocktail bar with a serious mezcal and tequila programme.
The cocktails are built around agave spirits. The Guêpe Verte — mezcal, lime, agave, fresh chili — is a signature. The mezcal flight programme runs to dozens of producers from across Mexico. The bar pioneered the taqueria-speakeasy format that several Paris bars have since copied.
The crowd is mid-thirties Marais locals and curious cocktail enthusiasts. Pair with Little Red Door for a complete Marais hidden cocktail evening.
