Toulouse: in its basement, the restaurant Under Luo hides a secret bar
It is accessed by a door concealed in a cupboard. This opens onto three brick alcoves. Each offers a different and captivating intimate atmosphere.
At the Under Luo Restaurant, located at 6 rue de la Fonderie, a stone’s throw from the Place du Salin, in Toulouse, there is almost nothing to indicate that a secret tavern occupies the basement. You have to take the stairs leading to the toilets to get there. And there, still nothing says that you will find the sesame to access the clandestine bar. It is located in one of the doors of the black lacquered cabinet in Asian style. “But we played on the multiplicity of handles so that customers get lost a little more,” says Oriane, communication manager and waitress at the restaurant.
two clandestine addresses
Once we have crossed the famous bottomless cupboard, another world awaits us. Or rather a succession of three charming brick alcoves. In the first, we discover a bar and eat standing.
The second resembles a train carriage with its custom-made velvet seats, its small golden Kartell lamps on the tables and this pine canvas representing the locomotive of the Orient Express.
Finally, the third brings together several cozy lounges, topped with a portrait of a woman from the 1930s, created by the Toulouse artist Sans pretention tattoo.
After the Agency, the Under Luo Restaurant is the second address in Toulouse to surf on the wave of the “speakeasy” (speak softly) inspired by the taverns prohibited during American Prohibition, at the end of the First World War. During this period, many establishments sprung up in secret places to be able to drink in secret. This is where the term speakeasy comes from: you had to speak quietly to avoid the police intervening.
Open for 20 days, in the former premises of 18, the Under Luo Restaurant offers French-Asian fusion cuisine and cocktails. “Our specialties are bao, which are balls of dough filled with a stuffing”, specifies Oriane.
This Friday, at 6 p.m., the restaurant will open its hidden bar, which is without being so since the team must communicate well if it wants to receive the public. “We rely a lot on word of mouth. The idea is to arouse curiosity, we are not a private club, ”slips Oriane. Limited to 40 seats, this clandestine bar is therefore open to everyone until 1 am.
You were told that almost nothing indicated the presence of this hidden bar. But rather pay attention to this small red magnifying glass integrated into the entrance of the restaurant. “If it’s on, it means the clandestine bar is open,” warns Oriane.