Since it opened at 8 a.m. this Friday, December 25, the bar “To the good reception” de Tinqueux, is always full. At the counter, discussions are lively. Philippe is seated, glass in hand. “We come with friends to have a little drink, while waiting for the festivities“, he exclaims.
Further on, Martial sips his coffee. Originally from Château-Thierry, he came to Tinqueux to keep his daughter’s cats. So, while waiting for her to come back to celebrate Christmas with him, there is no question of remaining alone. “It’s a great atmosphere, the bosses assure, it’s really a good Christmas“, he rejoices.
“The Christmas trifecta”
Between the clinking of coffee cups and the hubbub of conversations, some people focus more on their scratching. This is particularly the case of David, seated with his father and his brother-in-law. “It’s a tradition, as soon as we get together with the family, the next day we will do a scratch card. I’ve always known that, my grandfather played PMU and when I was little, I followed him to the bistro, with my father“, he says.
And he’s not the only one to have Christmas play as a routine. “Every Christmas, we come here with my father to do a trifecta. It allows us to find each other and then like that, we avoid preparing the meal“, Céline laughs.
So all day long, there is a line at the counter. ” Some have received scratch cards at Christmas and come to collect their winnings, others come to collect cigarettes, top-ups, postcards or whatever? Then there are the people who want to find each other. For now, it’s morning, they are drinking coffee but tonight, there will be the little glass of Christmas champagne“, says the boss Laurent Sotty.
Traditionally, the bar is still open on December 25. “It has become a bit of a benchmark in the region. Some years, people even came from Châlons or Epernay because everything was closed near their homes.“, he continues.
His mother, formerly manager of the establishment, even joined him this Friday. “I came to eat with my son and then I help make the cafes, serve the customers …“, she enthuses. And she assures him: she”doesn’t know a friendlier bar“.
Yet this year, customers are still fewer. “Some are afraid with covid and go out less. We can feel it especially in the elderly“, confides Laurent Sotty.
So his remedy is speech. As soon as the pace calms down, he sits down with clients to discuss and hear from them.