A new fast food restaurant has opened in Paris’s Latin Quarter, replacing a historic bookstore that once served the area’s intellectual community. Manhattn’s Burgers, a Belgian-founded chain offering American-style fare, launched its flagship outlet this month on Place Saint-Michel on the Left Bank. The restaurant features decor inspired by New York City, including a neon image of the Empire State Building, and serves items such as the Rockefeller Burger and Harlem Chicken Burger, priced at €13.90.
The site had long been home to Gibert Jeune, a bookstore well-known for its selection of school and university textbooks, as well as new and second-hand books, records, and CDs. The Gibert family first established a presence in the area in 1886 when Joseph Gibert opened a bookstall by the Seine. The family business later split into two chains—Gibert Joseph and Gibert Jeune—that both operated extensively along Boulevard Saint-Michel. However, declining book sales led Gibert Jeune into receivership in 2017, with all its stores closing by 2021. The Place Saint-Michel premises remained empty until Manhattn’s Burgers moved in this year.
The transition has elicited mixed reactions from locals. Some residents, like Paul, a 64-year-old pensioner, lament the loss of a uniquely Parisian bookstore presence. “Cities, and not only Paris, are losing their particularities,” he said, expressing concerns about cultural standardisation as familiar shops disappear. Others are more accepting of the change. An 87-year-old woman, who asked not to be named, acknowledged the influx of tourists in the area and saw the restaurant as a practical addition, noting, “There are so many tourists here now and they have to eat somewhere.”
The restaurant initially planned to launch a burger called the “Gibert Cheese,” intended as a tribute to the site’s literary history. However, the Gibert family objected to the idea, and the product was withdrawn.
Local authorities have also expressed a pragmatic view of the shift. Jean-Pierre Lecoq, the district mayor, noted the value of maintaining occupied retail spaces in the neighbourhood. “It’s better to have a retail outlet occupied than to have a storefront down,” he said, acknowledging changes in consumer behavior, including reduced physical book sales and increased online shopping, despite the cultural implications.
A recent study by the Parisian Urbanism Workshop supports these observations, reporting a decline in cultural retail outlets in Paris—from 6,703 in 2000 to 5,375 in 2026—while the number of cafés and restaurants has grown from 12,831 to 15,990 over the same period. This trend reflects broader shifts in commercial and cultural landscapes as traditional bookshops make way for new types of businesses in the city.