In the can at Can Can
April 5, 2009
It’s authentic. From the tiny little octagonal floor tile to the toilet’s high, high tanks with a long, dangling chain for flushing, Can Can’s Francophile obsessiveness reaches its fever pitched mania in the bathroom.
Not only are the toilets from France, there’s French soap sitting on the sink, the little shelves that hold paper towels in a nice, neat stack (don’t knock those over!) are French, and the sinks and sink fixtures are also from France. In fact, just in case you paused to contemplate the whisper of a question about authenticity, you can look down while washing your hands and actually read French words right on the faucets. Quelle détail!
The stalls need to darken a little with age, but the flower-like sconces and ceiling lights have that perfect leftover-from-the-nineteenth-century feel about them. It’s slightly on the dim side in there, however, and despite all of the shiny white tile, the corners have shadows where grime might lurk. Could it be imported grime? Or is the alleged grime just an illusion?
A real French brasserie’s bathroom would have at least a hundred years of ground-in flotsam build-up on the floors and the whole room would be deeply stained by Gitanes smoke. Why stop smoking because you have to pee? Why stop peeing because you need a smoke? This is the secret we Americans never quite learned from the French. Luckily, we can now teach them how to text and pee at the same time. Or is that the Japanese?
I digress. Like the big zinc bar out front, imported along with a real, live Frenchman to install it while the restaurant—once a bridal shop—was being refitted, it’s the little details that help to complete the fantasy at Can Can. Most restaurants merely offer food; Can Can, right down to its bathroom fixtures, offers a glimpse into another world, another culture. Sure, it’s just set dressing, but isn’t a fake pissoir a lot more fun to visit than all the other real bathrooms out there?
Can Can Brasserie
3120 W Cary St
Richmond, VA 23221
(804) 358-7274
13 Responses to “In the can at Can Can”
1. dc says:
Brandon, you are spectacular. Thank you for making my morning.
Hey, RVANews: more bathroom reviews! May I suggest LuLu’s men’s room? Quite snazzy.
on April 6th, 2009 at 9:04 am
2. John says:
Will they bring your meal to you if you need to spend a little extra time enjoying the decor?
on April 6th, 2009 at 9:26 am
3. Brandon says:
Oh, Danaynay–rest assured. There are more to follow (and what were you doing in the men’s bathroom??).
on April 6th, 2009 at 10:18 am
4. dc says:
Brandon…when you gotta go, you gotta go.
on April 6th, 2009 at 10:22 am
5. Valerie Catrow says:
I feel like the Can Can bathroom is so pretty that you just have to call it a “powder room” even if it isn’t one.
Can we talk about their fancy ham and cheese? I can’t pronounce it without sounding like a tool. All I know is that it’s SO fancy you have to eat it with a knife and fork. That served with some frittes and I am a happy lady.
ALSO, when I was pregnant, I was on a constant search for the most tart and sour lemonade known to man. Some magical angel at Can Can once brought me the object of this search. It was so tart my face involuntarily contorted. And it was fizzy! So wonderful.
on April 6th, 2009 at 10:24 am
6. Valerie Catrow says:
Also, can we get a w00t for the title of this article? It makes me laugh every time I read it.
In the spirit of full disclosure, I wrote the title. I THINK I AM HILARIOUS.
on April 6th, 2009 at 10:25 am
7. Susan Howson says:
I need some food suggestions for Can Can. Sometimes I just look at the menu and my brain shuts off so I just order moules frites every time. Someone command me to branch out and I will do whatever you tell me.
on April 6th, 2009 at 10:31 am
8. Mike McCormick says:
YES WE CanCan — j’aime beacoup le WC (ce’st vraitment un object d’art); le patio avec les enfants sur l’ete est magnifique!
Valerie, congrats on a fantastic headline — chuckles all around — Brandon, enjoyed it thoroughly — we hold a CanCan lunch on New Year’s Day fully responsible for the birth of our daughter, Sophia — bravo CanCan…
on April 6th, 2009 at 1:52 pm
9. Caitlin says:
So true, girl! It ain’t La Poule au Pot, but Can Can’s the closest thing we got! http://www.lapouleaupot.fr/accueil_vo.htm
on April 6th, 2009 at 11:05 pm
10. your name sux says:
Dropped a deux at cancan.
on April 8th, 2009 at 1:07 am
11. bopst says:
thanks Brandon. I think this theme suits you…
on April 8th, 2009 at 1:04 pm
12. Lynn says:
But the wood is fauxed.
on April 8th, 2009 at 9:38 pm
13. thecheckoutgirl says:
cute! never visited but may, based on the fact that I am a sucker for a nice ladies’ room.
and the title? A+!
on April 12th, 2009 at 3:55 pm