It's the evening before Christmas in Paris. Dull and damp. A small restaurant, far from the most attractive, is in the process of closing for the holiday. The owner suggests to Albert the waiter, that he should serve the remaining customers a complimentary Armagnac, a brandy from southern France. Suddenly the only male customer keels over dead. Shot. We follow two of the female customers after they leave the scene to a surprising conclusion.

This short story is part of a three story collection, "A Maigret Christmas and Other Stories" from 2018. First published in 1951. The three were translated from French by David Coward. But note, it is not one of Simenon's Inspector Maigret stories!

Librarian's note: this entry is for the story, "The Little Restaurant near Place des Ternes." Entries for collections of short stories by the author can be found elsewhere on Goodreads.