Espace Grand Paris Martin Luther King viewed from rue Dominique Duvauchelle
© Entrée to Black Paris

Upon receiving an invitation from artist Waymond Anthony Grier to lunch with him at the Martin Luther King Center in Creteil, my husband Tom and I headed to this Paris suburb with anticipation.

I first visited the center in June 2021, when it was just days from opening to the general public.

Located across the street from the University Paris-Est Creteil's Sports Sciences et Techniques Department, the Espace Grand Paris Martin Luther King is home to three nonprofit organizations affiliated with the Fondation MLK as well as the Protestant Evangelist Eglise Martin Luther King. 

With over 5,600 square meters of space, it welcomes families, associations, professionals, businesses and communities in the eastern Île-de-France region.

Espace Grand Paris Martin Luther King - entrance
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The auditorium seats 1,000 people, and modular spaces named after Rosa Parks and Denis Mukwege are excellent settings for workshops, training sessions, and cocktail receptions. 

The facility also boasts additional meeting rooms, a café, a Fun Park (sports hall), office space, and a nursery.  

Foyer and Café by MLK
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And then, there's the restaurant - Seven Rooftop.

Located on the fourth floor of the building, there is a dedicated elevator that takes diners up to the enormous interior dining room and terrace.

Signage for Seven Rooftop elevator
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 Signage at restaurant entrance
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Lunch is always served buffet style, whereas dinner is served from a menu.

 Dining room set up for lunch buffet
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The buffet was plentiful, with charcuterie, cheeses, and salads on round tables at the beginning of the line; assorted steamed veggies, mashed potatoes, fish, and sausage in individual chafing dishes on a single long table, and multiple desserts on a round table at the far end.

Buffet offerings
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Charcuterie, cheeses, and salads
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Desserts
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A beautiful pizza oven sits at the far end of the dining room, and multiple, fresh pre-sliced pizzas are available to choose from.

Pizza oven and pizzas
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We were among the first people to arrive. It was a sunny day, but the wind was brisk, so we opted for a small table on the covered terrace rather than sit outdoors.  

Covered terrace set up for dining
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Outdoor terrace
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From this vantage point, we could make out a few Paris landmarks - but nothing as iconic as the Eiffel Tower.

There was an interesting view of painted gas storage tanks on the opposite side of the covered terrace.

View from covered terrace
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Though the fare offered at the buffet was not particularly innovative, we were satisfied with our meal.  It's hard to go wrong with freshly made pizza!

Pizza with truffle and rocket
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The buffet costs 18.90€ plus beverages.  If you're in the neighborhood at lunchtime, it's definitely a good deal.

Espace Grand Paris Martin Luther King is at the end of Metro Line 8 (Creteil - Pointe du Lac).

This is where the Paris metro system connects with C1 téléphérique, the new aerial cable car system that serves distant suburbs to the southeast of Paris.  

Before heading back to Paris, we decided to take the C1 from Pointe du Lac to the first stop—Limeil-Brévannes—just to say we had the experience.

C1 station at Pointe du Lac
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C1 cable cars at Pointe du Lac
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C1 cable cars
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In transit to Limeil-Brévannes
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We exited our car at Limeil-Brévannes, asked the station attendant a few questions about the system, and then took the journey back to Pointe du Lac.

All in all, it was a lovely day!

Espace Grand Paris Martin Luther King
1 Rue Martin Luther King
94000 Créteil
Metro: Creteil - Pointe du Lac (Line 8)