Budget restaurants in Paris
 

I was to travel to Paris alone this spring, but now a friend will be traveling with me, so my original idea to eat very simple has changed to finding restaurants in the 20-25 euro range for dinner. We will be staying in the Latin Quarter (Hotel Monge), but are open to finding restaurants in other areas. We will probably do separate touring some days, but we like to have dinner together.

We enjoy Asian, Indian, and Moroccan cuisine along with French fare. Greek would be good, but I read on someone's post that some of the Greek restaurants in the Latin Quarter are questionnable with hygene. We are not the McDonald's type.

I've browsed this board a bit as well as others. Still looking for those gems. Any suggestions?

I don't care what anyone says about the hygiene. I spent my lean student nights dining like a queen at some of those little Latin Quarter haunts (yes, there are a number of Greek restaurants, but there's a good mix) and still head there for at least one meal. Try to ignore the food hawkers and simply follow your nose.

For a trip to the Indian subcontinent, be sure to visit the Passage Brady in the 10th arrondissement (métro Château d'Eau). The Indian/Pakistani restaurants at the Boulevard de Strasbourg end are more refined and pricier (i.e. 15€ per person) but at the Faubourg Saint Denis exit, there are some modest places with giant plates of curry for something like 4.50 €.

Within walking distance of Hôtel Monge:

Kathmandu, 22 rue des Boulangers (Nepalese, VERY reasonable, cozy, attractive, good food).

Mekong, rue Navarre (Vietnamese, best I've had in that area, established neighborhood clientele, closed on weekends. Small, so it fills up quickly.)

Roi de Couscous, rue Linné (Moroccan, good food, warm, friendly staff)

Hope this helps.

Hi L,

In that price range, I suggest that you just wander the neighborhood reading menus and sniffing the air.

Let us know if you find any hidden gems.

((I))

PS,

You get 15% off if you reserve online at Balzar.

See www.flobrasseries.com

It sounds like you'd enjoy a favorite of ours--Paris Dakar. Delicious Senegalese food. It's in a questionable neighborhood north of the Pompidou Center. Take a cab.

Also planning to go in June to Le Jardin des Pates in the area you (and I) are staying. Sounds like health-oriented plates of pasta with different sauces. They have salads too.

Both restaurants should come up in a google search.

There's some excellent Chinese food near the Balard metro stop. Just go there and look at menus. It's the authentic thing.

You might also want to check out the falafal restaurants on and around Rue des Rosiers, in the Marais. Good food cheap.

Kerouac - thanks for the tip on Passage Brady.
Tod

Wonderful suggestions. I've never had Nepalese or Senegalese. It sounds like we may be in for an adventure! I always post my trip reports and will be happy to share those gems I'm hoping we find!
Diane

Should you find yourself in the 7ème near the place Ecole MIlitaire, try Punjab, a truly marvelous Indian restaurant with huge portions (something I'm not usually a fan of, as I eat rather sparingly, but have two teenage kids who can wolf down pounds of food at one sitting) and low prices.

Good reply, ira. That's what we do everywhere. The idea of knowing where you are going to eat in a month's time in some town halfway round the world, has always struck me as bizarre. Certainly not the spontaneous play-it-as-it-comes approach that I try to apply to foreign travel.

twoflower, I noticed that you specified foreign travel. And I understand and appreciate your approach. But I also understand luvtotravel's desire to learn what she/he can ahead of time.

I've spent far too much time in hotel rooms in the US looking through phone books trying to figure out what restaurants are nearby. No matter where I'm going, if I have the chance to learn about restaurants in the area before I go, I relish the opportunity!

Actually, I've had such good luck with recommended restaurants from fellow-Fodorites that I can't imagine traveling without a list. My friend and I had great fun the last time in Paris searching for the ones that appealed to us the most in writing. Every suggestion was a winner. We did the same thing last year in Tuscany. We also ate out enough that we had opportunity to be spontaneous, too.

luv, if you like Indian, you will like Nepalese -- lots of similarities.

I agree that it is fun to walk around and discover. That's how I found 2 of the 3 I mentioned. However, luv asked for suggestions on specific types of cuisine. I doubt that she will plan her entire trip based on the suggestions here.