Stalking the elusive 20 euro Paris dinner

Hi S,

There are a number of restaurants along rue Guisarde (off Pl St. Sulpice) and surrounding streets.

Also Vesuvio on rue Gozlin (opposite the Eglise St Germain des Pres) is very good French/Italian.

Also any of the Leon de Bruxelles for moules and frites.

Good luck with Le Colvert, it closed three years ago.

We enjoyed this restaurant last spring. You could do it for about 20 euros (with the prix fixe or 2 courses instead of 3) or spend a bit more for the whole shebang:


Gallopin - 2nd arr.

Lovely. Excellent food. Super friendly people, although very little English was spoken, the maitre'd and waiter were extremely welcoming and helpful. We had lots of laughs over the pouring rain. English menu was available. Such a French place. A brassiere - very nice atmosphere. Slightly casual, but not like a bistro. Lots of smoking (oh well). And a dog too.

I had escargot, duck l'orange (really good) and chocolate souffle cake - 35 euros. DH had shrimp and vegetable salad, chateaubriant and chocolate souffle cake - 44 euros. Would not order chateaubriant again, just a steak, although very tender, not anything exotic.

They had several prix fixe menus with varying prices. Such as 19.5 euros, 21 euros, 23 euros, 28 euros. And a 33.5 prix fixe with a small choice of appetizers, dinners, desserts (10 choices) and a glass of wine.

Heres another one for you.
Do a web search on Le Vin Sobre.
What a little beauty! Lovely photos of the food etc.
Up Val-de-Grace way at 25 Rue Feuillantines, 75005.
Only stumbled upon it while web-surfing so can't say good or bad but to me looks worth a try.

One I did enjoy was:
L'Insulaire (So tiny!)
Bistro du Peintre ( just the best)
L'Oree Du Marais, 29 Rue Francs Bourgeois,75004. Tel; 01.48.87.81.70
(lovely)
Le Chaland, 163 Quai de Valmy, 75010. Tel;01.40.05.18.68 (only had lunch there a few times-home cooked food).
And in 2000:
Bistrot Des Vignes, 1 Rue Jean Bologne,75016. Tel: 01.45.27.76.64
(Remember it being really nice- 48ero for 2 dinners with wine & coffee).

If you can sneak it up to 26 euro (and I think many of your list already are there) for a really great three course with lots of options, check out Louis Vins on the rue de la Montagne Ste-Geneviève in the Fifth. It's really excellent and great value. Also it has great wines by the glass (or bottle) at really reasonable prices.

Did a little walk-about on PagesJaunes.photosdevilles and found Bistrot De Vignes on the corner. Brought back more memories of our dinner there. It was more than just alright! We had starters, mains, desert etc. for that price! The food was beautifully presented.
My mum and I were staying at the Hotel Gavarni - the owner suggested it and made the booking.
We weren't disappointed!

bkm

There's always one of several Chez Papa locations....

And as to "why go to Paris for Thai or Italian?" -- you should know that ethnic food is different in every country, so it will never be as you expect. Not to mention the French national dish, couscous.

SemiMike - If you go to the website of 'Paris Eiffel Tower News' there is an article written by one of the editors, Phil Chavanne.

He reviews three or so cheap eateries that have excellent food.
The one that stands out for me is Le Gourmet, 19 Rue de Bruxelles, 75009.
For the lowly sum of 13euros you can have quite an adequate meal.

Besides his article there is a miriad of links that are equally as interesting for people travelling to Paris.

Great info! Thanks!

Thanks from me, too!

I remember a few years back, a lovely, reasonably priced place called Le Bistro 17, (in the 17th arrondisement of course). We enjoyed many good meals there. I agree about the Leon de Bruxelles places, delicious Moules! There are a few places called L'entrecote, which are so-so, unless you go to the original one, which for some reason is much better. Also, Patricia Wells does wonderful restaurant recommendations. Bon appetit!

I had a 20.00 e dinner at a small tapas bar called Cervantes on a side-street in Montparnasse. Three tapas dishes - patatas bravas, a mushroom dish and a sliced ham dish with bread -and a pitcher of Sangria. 20.00e inc a small tip as it was the waitresses first night.

Pjk

I highly recommend Chez Imogene, a creperie in the Oberkampf neigborhood. You can get a three course meal for 15 euros (not including cider). My boyfriend and I used to frequent this creperie when we were students studying in Paris, because, let's be honest, where else can you get a three course meal in Paris for 15 euros? Michel, the owner, is a delightful man and makes delicious crepes. It is a very small restaurant, however, so reservations (don't need to be made more than a day in advance) are a must. All staff speaks English, and I believe there is also an English menu.

Address: 25, rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud
Telephone: 01 48 07 14 59

bm

Le Bistro 17, in the 17th arrondisement ....Cervantes on a side-street in Montparnasse....creperie in the Oberkampf neigborhood....
hmmm... sounds like folks should 'branch out' to find good meals for less € €....

<We have had some enjoyable experiences in those non-touristy, out-of-the-way places where locals may go for an inexpensive evening meal. And the food should be French! (Why go to Paris for Thai or Italian?) I would welcome additions to our list>

FLUNCH (Heaven forbid) meets this criteria perfectly and at about half the price. Sure not type of place you're looking for but for me is the ultimate such place as per your criteria - you didn't specify restaurants with wait people. All over Paris and France.

bookmarking

Any recommendations for a bistro in the 3rd district? Looking for something simple and we have no problem with ethnic. Family of four on a budget.

Normal1983, Sandra Gustafson's book 'Cheap Eats in Paris' may be a wonderful help in sourcing a cheap meal if you take it along.
She lists these eateries in the 3rd(unfortunately her 8th edition book is in Francs so you will have to convert & add a euro or two I guess).


Cafe` Des Musees, 49 rue de Turenne.
Metro- St.Paul (110-130F)

Chez Jenny, 39 Boulevard du Temple.
Metro- Republique (200F)

Chez Nenesse, 17 rue de Saintonge, angle de Poitou.
Metro-Files-du-Calvaire
(70-85F lunch) (150-165F dinner)

La Mule Du Pape, 8 rue Pas de la Mule.
Metro: Chemin-Vert (85-120F)

Le Hangar, 12 Impasse Berthaud.
Metro-Rambuteau (130-160F)

Restaurant De La Cite`, 22 rue Rambuteau.
Metro- Rambuteau (50-90F a la carte) ( 70F 2 courses)

Restaurant La Fontaine Gourmande, 11, rue Charlot.
Metro-Files-du-Calvaire (160-170 a la carte)Also have Pre-Fix.

Don't limit yourselves to the 3rd - You will have a wonderful cheap meal at any one of the places I listed for SemiMike.

This is an important--even noble--quest. Good luck! Le Petit St. Benoit is a personal favorite; I hope you like it. Another place to try is Trumillou.

Joe

While some of those Sandra Gustafson recommendations may be good, it seems kind of pointless to even look at prices that are still listed in francs -- since they haven't existed for 5 years (or 8 years according to one "reliable" poster here). To think you can convert and just add a couple euros could still be missing the current price by half.
I do know that we ate at Chez Jenny last year which was very good, but our dinner for two was somewhere around 100 euros.

I know, I know, who wants to eat Italian in Paris? Even so, I recently discovered a great little place ... Geppetto, on rue St Charles in the 15th (metro: Charles Michels). There's a 3-course menu for 25 euros. The chef is Sicilian, the food is excellent, and the portions are very ample. We especially liked the ambience -- it's a small place, very cozy, a mix of couples plus some family groups with kids. Not a tourist in the place.

Sandra Gustafson has newer editions that state prices in euros and she has the latest edition coming out in april of this year. The title is now 'Great Eats Paris'

I found her guide very helpful for my 2006 and 2007 trips to Paris. lynda

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Sorry for the late reply of our actual experience, now about a month old. Because of an odd combination of circumstances, we were able to sample only one new restaurant during our four May evenings in the city (which included a revisit to Polidor, a good choice for Left Bank ambience and solid budget-priced bistro fare). The newcomer ended up being none of the choices on this list, but was instead Chez Gladines on the Rue des Cinq Diamants, in the general Place d'Italie area. It was a casual red-checked-tablecloth (literally!) resto with good food at very modest prices. A number of students were eating there: one could have an enormous mixed salad and a beer, and still have a few coins left over from a 10 euro note for a small tip! At 50+, we were clearly the oldest ones there, but enjoyed our "big salad" (Madame) and cassoulet (me) very much, along with the casual ambience of family style seating - be prepared to make new friends! I see that it also got a good review recently on a Web site I frequent: http://goparis.about.com/od/parisrestaurantreviews/fr/Chez_Gladines.htm?nl=1

Thanks for reporting back. I always wonder what people ended up doing, so it's good to know.

bookmarking

bookmarking

Can somebody tell me what kind of food you get in a 20 euro dinner? I can see crepe, moules frites or tabouleh can fit the bill but not a proper multicourse french dinner.

OK I don't have any 20 euro dinner restaurant tip, but if you're looking for a nice proper dinner with a Michelin star without spending your livesavings, consider Le (Petit) Celadon at the Westminster hotel on rue de la Paix where they serve a 3 course dinner for 51 euro. You'd be pushing your luck to try to get a table without a reservation, so call ahead (+33) 01 47 03 40 42.

Must a "proper" meal come with a Michelin star? Does it have to be 3 courses? I think not. There are plenty of bistros and restaurants that offer a 2-course menu for under 20€.

bookmarking, wonderful places to try when we visit in October, I was wondering if 30 Euro meals would be the norm. Good to see that you can spend less. We are trying for 100 Euros a day with 2 adults and a 12 year old son, so if we visit these it should still work. Thanks for the wonderful places.

Here are some excellent, inexpensive restaurants we discovered this April. Note prices are for two people.

Au Trou Normand, 9, rue Jean Pierre Timbaud (11th arr). Delicious food, 50 Euros for two with wine, no prix-fixe, gets crowded by 8:30. We went there twice and loved it.

La Cantine du 3eme, 5 blvd. du Temple (11th arr) and open on Sundays. We had several very good three-course meals there for 32 Euros with wine for both of us. If you’re in the neighborhood, this is a good bet. No prix-fixe menu

Chez Imogene, 25 rue Jean Pierre Timbaud (11th arr). Wonderful crepes and salads, 36 Euros for both of us, very popular, go early.

Au Coin de Malte, 21 rue Oberkampf (11th) . Family style cooking, very small, only open from 8:00 -9:30 pm, simple, good cooking, 3- course prix-fixe meal for 11 Euros each.

Chez Paul, 13 rue Charonne (11th). Loved the steak with béarnaise sauce, no prix-fixe, 51 Euros for two with wine.

Bolfingers, 5 rue de la Bastille (4th arr). Old, lovely restaurant, although if you’re a nonsmoker, you won’t sit in the prettiest room, 30 Euros 3-course prix-fixe menu each. There’s a smaller restaurant across the street, which is somewhat cheaper.

Bistro Lepicurien, 86 bis, rue Lepic (16th arr) in the Montmartre, this is a wonderful small restaurant with delicious foie gras and everything else. Wish we had returned. 40 Euros for two plus wine, no prix-fixe menu.

Le Grand Bleu, Port de l’Arsenal, Blvd. de la Bastille (12th arr). Right on St. Martin's Canal and lovely to eat outside. Seems to be a favorite for Sunday lunch, great seafood and salads. 32 Euros for two plus wine.

Capucine, 39 Blvd. des Capucines (2nd arr) near Opera Garnier, great onion soup, steak tartare, 50 Euros for two with wine.

Lotus Blanc, 45 rue de Bourgogne (7th arr), an excellent Vietnamese restaurant we discovered on our last trip, near the Rodin Museum, Very reasonable, didn’t note price.

Great post. I can't wait to try them out.

I thought La Boussole had fabulous food. I had a wonderful 3-course lunch for 17 euros last month and dinner prices are not that much higher. The place is right in Saint-Germain but I think I was the only tourist there. All aroune me there were only French diners. The sorbets were divine.
http://www.la-boussole.com/

I always like at least one Italian meal on a trip, no matter where I am. It reminds me of Italy and I like to be around Italian speaking people. One lovely Italian restaurant I tried last month was Sesto Senso,4 Rue de l'Echiquier in the 10th. Modestly priced. If you're there for lunch you could walk over a few minutes to 47 rue du Château d'Eau and get some of Tholoniat's chocolates. They're fabulous.

Great suggestions. Bookmarking for future use. Thanks!

bookmarking

bookmarking. Thanks for the info!

Bookmarking

(and a thank you to Kerouac, Tod and JMWF if you happen to read this... all of your restaurant/cafe suggestions have been a huge hit!)

Glad to have been of help Slangevar - I hope are we getting a trip report sometime?

I have just picked up a great little book hot off the press by Angelika Taschen called, PARIS "Restaurants and More". Handy size to take along in ones purse.
I was particularly impressed with the layout: A map for each arrondisement where the restaurants are, several photos inside each restaurant and a street frontage shot. The photographer Vincemt Knapp must have been at each venue long before opening time as you get the whole perpspective of the seating without customers.

Of course there are the favourites mentioned kicking off with Le Grand Ve`four, Cafe` Marly and one I've never seen mentioned, Cador.(Definitely not in the 20 euro catagory).
Not all are French cuisine - mentioned is Innamorati Cafe, 57 Rue Charlot for Italian food with a 25-45Euro dinner menu.
Many other cheaper places are on offer like Le Comptoir des Saints-Peres with a 20-22Euro menu.

16th century restaurant up the road from Rue Mouffetard. We ate outside on the pedestrian only street. The inside has lots of atmosphere. Book ahead for a table inside.

Auberge Le Pot de Terre
22, rue du Pot de Fer - Paris Vème

www.lepotdeterre.com

3 course meals from 11.50E. We had the 15.00E
Selections include:
Salad of duck liver (suppl. 1,50 €)
Chiffonnade of smoked salmon
Onion soup gratinee
Poultry liver salad with raspberry vinegar
6 snails prepared with garlic butter
Mussels cooked in white wine with onions (suppl. 1,50 €)
Salad of gizzards
Mozzarella & tomato salad
Seafood salad

Dishes
Duck confit with parsleyed potatoes
Slab of salmon with sorrel sauce
Pork filet mignon with aromatic herbs
Tarragon lamb chops
Butcher cut with a green pepper or Roquefort sauce
Assortment of 2 fishes with fines herbs
Roast leg of lamb with garlic
Flank of beef with sweet onion confit
Fishes sauerkraut
Dishes of the Chief

Cheese or Desserts

Fruits salad
Caramel glazed cream custard
Apple pie
Chocolate mousse

Todor, for 20E you can get cassoulet, or for 13E you can get magret.
There are a lot of 20E prix fixe meals that are far more than crepes and moules. Try it, you might like it.
This is a great thread. Thanks to all.
Our faves
Au Piano Muet on rue Mouffetard
Auberge du Jarente on rue Jarente.
For 33E La Florimond

And Bistro du 7eme on blvd. Latour Mauborg

bookmarking

Hi Tod! Ooh, I wish I had that book right now... but I'll start with these suggestions, thanks.

By the way, the cafe on the slanting steps of the Rue des Barres (L'Ebouillante) was perfect - exactly what I was looking for.

I promise to start filing a trip report soon... Fodors has really packed my trip with excellent To Dos in Paris.

And maybe you'll get a laugh over things like me tripping over an Eiffel Tower trinket salesman and falling into a few dozen tourists watching a fire dancer. It certainly seemed to amuse them...

For those who believe that there is more to Paris restaurants than just French food, the absolute must of the moment is The Ethnic Paris Cookbook from DK Publishing -- it gives the addresses of the best ethnic restaurants and gives some of the prime recipes from these establishments, as well as some background information about the various foreign groups in Paris and where they hang out. From the 155,000 Lebanese who arrived during the civil war in 1975 to the 25,000 Japanese residents of France (mostly in Paris), plenty of groups are covered, as well as what and where they eat and where they do their shopping.

So where might some great couscous be found, kerouac (and others) ?

I just had some Lebanese food in the 5th and it was spectacular! Thanks for the book recommendation kerouac.

Bookmarking

mmm...Wish I had this list a few weeks ago.

bookmarking

A great many restaurants in Paris have fixed-price menus under 20 euro.

bkmkng

<<So where might some great couscous be found, kerouac (and others) ?>>
If you are in the 5e, in Mouffetard area, there are some excellent places for couscous. Le Couscouserie at Place Contrescarpe stands out in my opinion.

"Chez Léon" (not to be confused with Léon de Bruxelles - of which there is one right next door!) has excellent couscous on boulevard Beaumarchais, right at Place de la Bastille.

Wow! Some great suggestions. Bookmarking for reference. Thanks!

bookmarking for end of September trip.

We had delicious couscous at Restaurant des Quatres Freres. It's located at 127 Boulevard de Menilmontant, 11th Arrondissement, which is just a few steps from the Menilmontant metro. It was very reasonable also.

Can anybody tell me whether Le Gourmet on rue de Bruxelles is closed on Mondays?

Also, why aren't any of the places listed here in my new Zagats?

Gigi

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Gigi, either you got a defective Zagat's or something very strange has happened. Are you saying NONE of the places above are listed in Zagats? I don't have a new one, but a number of them were sure in the 2006 version.

However with thousands and thousands of restaurants in Paris, it's pretty hard to find a very complete list in any guide.

bookmarking

I went to my favorite Chinese restaurant in the Chinatown of the 13th arrondissement yesterday, and once again an enormous meal for 2 including a 50cl carafe of wine was 26.50€ for two.
Restaurant La Lune
36 avenue de Choisy
metro Porte de Choisy
It's just a block from the Chinese McDonald's, which is worth a tourist visit in itself.

Our family of four really enjoyed our very good and reasonably priced meal at Le Caveau de L'Isle, on Ille St. Louis.

Here's a detailed report with photos, written by someone else:
http://richardab.typepad.com/iheartparis/2004/11/le_caveau_de_li.html

And the restaurant's menu is on their URL http://www.lecaveaudelisle.com/uk/

Well, the 19.95€ menu of the Caveau scrapes into the 20€ elusiveness, but only if you drink tap water with the meal. The wine list comes up blank when I click on it. Scary!

Kerouac, I couldn't find the wine menu on-line, either. We only ordered house wine by the glass, and it was fine for us.

bookmarking

Is Le Fete Gallant still open? It is/was at 13 rue d'Ecole Polytechnique. I haven't been there in a while (too many restaurants to try!!) but that had a nice prix fixe menu for under 20 euros with good service.

I also liked L'Auberge de Champ de Mars, 18 rue de l’Exposition....but is that not out of the way enough?

ttt

Since this thread was dragged back up, I thought I would mention that there is a relatively thick Paris guidebook (in French) called "Paris restaurants under 12 euros". I noticed it in FNAC yesterday.

Bookmarking for March trip.
Thank you!

Thanks for the ethnic food suggestions!

I had fabulous Indian food in Madrid. It was different in a slight way from the Indian I've had in the states. I love to try ethnic food in other countries to see what the differences are.

bm