We sat in the 'front parlor' [=a parlor in the front of a house/apartment] and had a nice visit.
a beauty/funeral/tattoo 'parlor'
an ice-cream 'parlor'
(..) Yes, that's very pretty. I heard a story once. I've heard a lot of stories in my time. They went along with the sound of a tinny piano... ...playing in the parlor downstairs. "Mister, I met a man once when I was a kid," they'd always begin. I guess neither one of our stories is very funny. (..)1942 Casablanca