Across the globe, spies love to gather in inconspicuous dens to meet contacts and hold discreet conversations. This week, on the eve of its relocation, Intelligence Online explores Chez Françoise restaurant in Paris, where politicians, military officers and diplomats have for decades discussed budgets and traded gossip.
A former officer of France's DGSE foreign intelligence service who worked on several continents recalls debriefing sources at Chez Françoise, an iconic restaurant in Paris's 7th arrondissement founded in 1949. At a table to his left was Marine Le Pen, the former president of the far-right Rassemblement National party, and to his right was a representative of the Parti Communiste Français.
MPs and diplomats of different political creeds have long gathered at Chez Françoise, located just a stone's throw
