Emily in Paris was a Netflix sensation in early October, courting both adulation and controversy alike for its portrayal of the French and Americans. We covered the fabulous filming locations in Emily in Paris on our sister site, Untapped New York. Here, we’ll focus on Emily’s apartment.
Emily (played by Lily Collins) is put up in a furnished apartment by her company at 1, Place de l’Estrapade, located just next to the Panthéon in the 5th arrondisement. The Panthéon is a monument modeled after the Pantheon in Rome, where some of the most famous figures of French history are buried including Victor Hugo, Voltaire and Rousseau. Emily lives on the top floor in apartment 501, in rooms known as the chambres de bonne because they were once the servants quarters. Many chambres de bonne have since been converted into apartments or home offices. My husband says an apartment number for Emily in 501 is “pas possible” because the chambres de bonne must be on the 6th or 7th French floors (wait for the whole joke about pas possible in the show). The building at 1, Place de l’Estrapade has 7 floors so Emily’s apartment would be on the 7th floor.
Emily is put up in a furnished apartment by her company at 1, Place de l’Estrapade, located just next to the Panthéon in the 5th arrondisement. The 5th arrondisement is in the Latin Quarter, a popular area for students, historically a place for artists and creative types, and now quite bourgeois. It also has the feel of old Paris, with winding, cobblestone streets and pre-Haussmannian architecture, making it a romantic, compelling choice to live for those hoping to experience a vision of Paris that is often portrayed in film.
It’s not surprising therefore that Emily would live in this area, close to the Panthéon, a monument modeled after the Pantheon in Rome, where some of the most famous figures of French history are buried including Victor Hugo, Voltaire and Rousseau. Emily lives on the top floor in apartment 501, in rooms known as the chambres de bonne because they were once the servants quarters. Many chambres de bonne have since been converted into apartments or home offices. If you ask anybody French, they would tell you that an apartment number for Emily in 501 is “pas possible” because the chambres de bonne must be on the 6th or 7th French floors (wait for the whole joke about pas possible in the show). The building at 1, Place de l’Estrapade has 7 floors so Emily’s apartment would actually be on the 7th floor. You do wonder why the show did not use the real floor numbers (perhaps it is too surprising for most Americans that people would opt to live in a seven floor apartment!).
As viewers, the chef Gabriel, who becomes Emily’s main love interest, also lives in 1, Place de l’Estrapade on the fourth floor. Emily repeatedly gets confused and tries to enter Gabriel’s apartment which would be the American fifth floor. Hence, the cultural difference that spurs a romance. Just nearby 1, Place de l’Estrapade is the restaurant in Emily in Paris, read more about it here!
