Canapes under the canopy? Paris gentrifies rusty mall

PARIS (AP) — Swapping burgers for lobster souffle and rusty welding for a state-of-the-art canopy roof, Paris' mayor this month unveiled a $1 billion revamp of the city's dilapidated main shopping and transport complex, Les Halles.

Paris authorities view the building project — which made central Paris a construction site pockmarked with cranes for seven years — as an opportunity to gentrify the 70s complex that was often voted among the city's the biggest eyesores by disgruntled Paris residents, and also attract a share of the millions of tourists who visit the city every year.

The previous incarnation of Les Halles became associated more with the myriad gangs of youths who traveled in on regional trains from the less-affluent suburbs to hang out there than it was for its rich past — as the gilded food market and shelter the French king would use to impress merchants in the 12th century and the culinary heart of the city that 19th-century novelist Emile Zola famously called "the belly of Paris."

[...] 35 new stores and restaurants hope to restore the site its culinary and cultural prowess, including a posh brasserie by Michelin-starred chef Alain Ducasse and a literary eatery designed by Philippe Starck with the slogan "Feed Your Mind."

Designed by Starck, diners come in and order organic delights, with the aid of an iPhone application, that are delivered to the customer on a conveyor belt to the table.

Za's owners struck a deal with three French publishing houses to print out books while clients dine, thanks to a huge printing press at the side of the cafe.