Frog Pubs Wi-Fi Hotspots in Paris
Restaurant Overview
The first Frog Pub was started in 1993 by Paul Chantler, from the U.K., and Thor Gudmundsson, of Icelandic heritage – who met while studying for their MBA degrees at INSEAD, the international business school in Fontainebleau.
Paul and Thor found themselves working together in one of the Entrepreneurship Faculty's courses entitled 'New Ventures'. Having discovered that one couldn't get a decent mug of British beer in Paris, they conceived a business plan for an English pub and micro-brewery.
After treading through the quagmire of French bureaucracy, looking for a viable site, and unsuccessfully trying to obtain financing from 25 different French banks who all considered their proposal too risky, the pair was finally able to acquire some private investors and forge ahead. By a stroke of serendipity, they were able to take over the premises and liquor license of a failing restaurant.
Frog & Rosbif brew pub, rue Saint-Denis, Paris. (click on image to see larger version)
The Frog & Rosbif opened on rue Saint-Denis in Paris' second arrondissement, becoming an instant hit with British expats and tourists, as well as with the local French residents. The name (en. The Frog & Roast Beef) is a jingoistic reference by the English and French to each other’s nationality.
The company has since expanded to four other locations in Paris, plus two in the provinces (Toulouse and Bordeaux). Plans to open another in Paris, as well as locations in Biarritz and Pau, are under consideration.
According to author and essayist Richard Maxwell, who interviewed the partners for his article Our Man In Paris: Brew It Yourself, "The atmosphere in their pubs is cheerful, friendly and all the staff are native English speakers. The décor is deliberately light and open, with little relation to the various dingy Victorian establishments that Parisians believe are traditional British public houses."
Tory Doody, the director of marketing for Frog Pubs, said: "The goal ... is to provide a place where Anglophiles can go to drink good English beer, speak English, watch British sporting events such as rugby, football and even major cricket matches and, most important of all, to have fun." (See videos.)
A pint of the house-brewed British beer costs €6, and a 2.3-liter jug (about 4 pints) is €20. The six year-round varieties are (with BeerAdvocate.com ratings shown in brackets): Frog Natural Blonde – 4.2% a.b.v. (alcohol by volume) [B]; Maison Blanche – 4.2% a.b.v. [N/A]; Ginger Twist – 4.4% a.b.v. [B]; Inseine – 4.4% a.b.v. [B]; Dark de Triomphe – 5.0% a.b.v. [B-]; and Parislytic – 5.2% a.b.v. [B]. (See Frog Pubs' descriptions of each beer.) A seventh variety is brewed only during winter: Rosbif's Revenge – 6.0% a.b.v. [A-].
Editing and portions written by Ian C. Mills, DiscoverFrance.net. Editorial content, listings, and lay-out are © 2010-
Discover France. (Image credits are listed in the Bibliography.) All Rights Reserved. Sources for this article include Cruising the English Frog Pubs of France, a review by Douglas W. Nelms from the site "lookat-france travellers' tales".
Company information
FrogPubs (holding company)
Headquarters: 6, cité Dupetit-Thouars, 75003 Paris (map)
Phone: 01 42 77 08 21 ; 01 42 71 82 39 ; Fax: 01 42 77 08 31
President: Paul Chantler
E-mail: paul@frogpubs.com
Founded: 16 November 2005 (holding company); 1993 (first brew pub opened)
Formation: SASU (Société par actions simplifiée à associé unique)
Capitalization: € 2,715,000.00
Business registration: RCS Paris B 484 941 489
SIRET: 48494148900029
Revenues: € 1,680,300.00 (2010), € 1,740,000.00 (2009)
Web: http://www.frogpubs.com
List of Locations in Paris (in order by arrondissement)
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The Frog & Rosbif
Hotspot cafe with free wifi wireless connection.
Address: 116, rue Saint-Denis, 75002 Paris (map)
Phone: 01 42 36 34 73
Métro: Étienne Marcel (line 4)
Manager: Jonathan Krauss
E-mail: jon@frogpubs.com
Hours: 7 days/wk., 12 noon - 2:00 a.m. (food until 11:00 p.m.)
Wi-Fi access: free, unlimited (private network)
The Frog & Princess
Address: 9, rue Princesse, 75006 Paris (map)
Phone: 01 40 51 77 38 ; 01 43 29 12 14
Métro: Mabillon (line 10); Saint-Germain-des-Prés (line 4)
Manager: Stéphane Veauvy
E-mail: princess@frogpubs.com
Hours: Mon. - Fri., 5:30 p.m. - 2:00 a.m.; Sat. - Sun., 12 noon – 2:00 a.m.
Wi-Fi access: free, unlimited (private network)
The Frog & Bercy Village
Address: 25, cour Saint-Émilion, 75012 Paris (map)
Phone: 01 43 40 70 71 ; 01 43 40 71 11
Métro: Cour Saint-Émilion (line 14)
Manager: Paul Chantler
E-mail: paul@frogpubs.com
Hours: 7 days/wk., 12 noon - 2:00 a.m. (food until 11:00 p.m.)
Wi-Fi access: free, unlimited (private network)
The Frog & British Library
Address: 113, avenue de France, 75013 Paris (map)
Phone: 01 45 84 34 26
Métro: Bibliothèque François Mitterand (line 14; RER-C)
Manager: Nathan Derri
E-mail: nathan@frogpubs.com
Hours: Mon. - Fri., 7:30 a.m. – 2:00 a.m.; Sat. - Sun., 12 noon - 2:00 a.m.
Wi-Fi access: free, unlimited (private network)
Frog XVI
Address: 110 bis, avenue Kléber, 75016 Paris (map)
Phone: 01 47 27 88 88
Métro: Trocadéro (lines 6, 9)
Manager: Katie Phillips
E-mail: katie@frogpubs.com
Hours: 7 days/wk., 12 noon - 2:00 a.m. (food until 11:00 p.m.)
Wi-Fi access: free, unlimited (private network)
Frog & Rosbif poster, Bordeaux.
List of Locations in the French Provinces
The Frog & Rosbif - Toulouse
Address: 14, rue de L'Industrie, 31000 Toulouse (map) maps/
Phone: 05 61 99 28 57
Manager: Charles Ozgur
E-mail: rosbif.toulouse@frogpubs.com
Wi-Fi access: free, unlimited (private network)
The Frog & Rosbif - Bordeaux
Address: 23, rue Ausone, 33000 Bordeaux (map) maps/
Phone: 05 56 48 55 85
Manager: Romain Dalençon
E-mail: romain@frogpubs.com
Hours: 7 days/wk., 5:30 p.m. - 2:00 a.m.
Wi-Fi access: free, unlimited (private network)
Related Videos
Introduction to Frog Pubs
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