Well, there's Café de la Gare which is directly behind the station, across from the entrance near the waiting lounge for the TGV and other French trains. It's friendly and nice, with good decore and the bar itself is built for conversation, developing into round tables at either end.

Opposite, in front of the station there's Les Brasseures, but I think you're going to find it too loud. There's a sort of "english pub" a bit along on Place Cornavin, across from the Catholic church, but for English places it's a distant 4th after Pickwick and some places in the old town.

If you want a more Suisse-french experience there are several really nice cafés a bit further away, first Café Art's (sic) on rue des Paquis on the Paquis (front) side and the closer Saveurs et Couleurs which is in the middle of the bohemian Grottes neighborhood in back of the station.

One more that I like a lot: Café Bizarre, which is along the (inbound) tram route across from the Mausoleum of St. Gervais on rue du Temple has a nice chic feel and a bit of a Brazilian twist. They've got a fireplace in the winter which can be quite nice.

-mark

Hi all,
Thanks to those who have helped already can anyone tell me of some good bars in Geneva that are within striking distance of the train station. Cheers

A personal favorite is Les Brasseurs, which is just opposite Cornavin train station. They brew their own beer on the premises� and its quite possibly the best beer that I have tasted in Switzerland. If you want to eat there, the Sauerkraut is pretty good too (they make it with beer rather than vinegar)