Challenge- Could you eat on $100. a day in Paris?
 

I am considering a trip to Gay Paris in the summer and will be there for 10 days. Apart from my lodgings, I would like to get away on $100. bucks a day for restaurants. I may rent an apartment but the only cooking I wish to do is to make breakfast in the morning. The rest of the time I would like to eat out and I really don't want to buy bread and cheese and eat it in a park. My college days are well behind me. So I ask again, can it be done on $100 US a day. At todays date, our glorious greenback amounts to a scant 77 euro!!!! I wish I knew how to say ARRGGGGG en francais! I don't drink wine so that need not be factored into the challenge. Merci les amis!

Lord, yes, girl. Even I can do it and I'm not shy about eating.

Tons of places have decent sit down meals in the $15 to 25 dollar range. I often order the plate du jour or daily special.

I find eating in the parks to be quite a nice experience; especially when you when you take it beyond just basic bread and cheese.

Do a text search on budget eating in paris for specific recomendations

It all depends on how much you'd like to, or are used to, consuming as your daily meal. If you like to eat a lot and are contemplating high-end bistros or restaurants with high prix fixe prices, then $100 per day is, sadly, not enough.

We're on our way for an extended 4-day weekend in Paris this Thursday and I have been researching and making the necessary arrangements for our daily meals. During this trip, we decided to dispense of our traditional 1 or 2 meals of haute or overly high-end restaurantnts and, instead, have one or two "moderate" bistro meal per day where the prix fixe averages around Euro 35 per person, without wine and drinks. The rest of the day's meal will be in much more casual eating establishment, and that may include market-bought food items for park consumption. We figured that inasmuch as we'd like to go nuts on all the Paris restaurants that we want to sample, at some point it can be an overkill by doing so and will do our overall eating experience a lot injustice due to the laws of diminishing returns. Besides, we feel that we have more opportunities to visit the city for the other restaurants.

Anyway, we have found through our previous trips and through my current research, that there will always be a lot of excellent bistros that will serve our purpose for good food based on fresh market-based ingredients, as well as offering differences in regional or culinary styles and combined with good wine lists.

$100 food budget per person per day shouldn't be a challenge in Paris if you know what you want to budget for.

Cheers.

Yes, just returned. Only spent over $100 once..dinner at Altitude 95. we ate pastries, crepes, Crepe Mons. etc for breakfast, ate soups, salads, sandwiches mostly for lunch, and had price fix menus in the evening.

The very best was Tire - Bouchon restaurant, 47 rue Descartes, in the 5th near rue Monge. Ate there twice. Excellent price fix starting at 15.50 euros. The staff are friendly, service is good, and the owner gives you a free little after dinner drink. It is a very small cozy place. This is my third trip eating there.

Have fun.

If you have a meal in a restaurant, then the cheapest option would be the lunch menu (3 courses) for 15-20euro at zillions of places. Don't eat at any place in or near tourist atttractions.

Another option would be the numerous cafeterias often located in department stores or standalones like Flunch.

Finally, theres the cheap and nutritious picnic lunch. Nothing better than sitting on a bench overlooking the Seine while munching on a crusty baguette, pate, cheeese, fresh zucchini and tomato, wine, perhaps a torte or fresh fruit. You will have the local passersby smiling at you with a "bon appetit!"

We don't spend $100 a day for BOTH of us to eat well; we don't frequent high-end restaurants but certainly don't go hungry. There are many cafés, bistros and restaurants with good food where you can easily dine for 15-30Euro per person.

Hi tw,

I think that you have been listening to the wrong people. You can do very well on 77E pp/day.

I've never spent more than 77 euro a day in Paris for eating in restaurants (including cafe stops and breakfast, although I don't have anything for breakfast except perhaps coffee and a croissant), and I do always have wine with dinner. And I have been there just this year, so that's recent figures. I don't eat from street vendors or that kind of thing, I mean sitting down in a cafe or bistro or restaurant and ordering something at a table.

You can certainly spend more than 77 euro for a meal in Paris if that is what you are asking. But if you are travelling alone I cannot imagine you will dine at Jules Verne every evening.

Frankly unless you are trying to get to Super Size Me scale, I think you would have difficulty getting through that much food. Who eats a full lunch AND a full dinner anymore?

That seem like a generous budget - actually downright easy since you don't drink wine! Bread and cheese in the park is advice for folks trying to make is on $30/day.

Menus are posted outside places so simply match them to what you want to spend. Obviously don't eat at high-end restaurants, guidebook recommended, where the chef is famous or they've got a star.

Seriously... as long as you only list as the only quality requirements that you should be able to sit down and eat, of course you can eat all your meals for $100 in Paris... In Oslo (just recently "won" a most expensive city in world award) you can easily get away with $100 a day for one person as long as you skip wine... You would have to give us some more specifics for this to be a challenge.

Sindre

At the Bistro de Breteuil you can have a very nice three-course dinner for 31 Euros, including apéritif, wine, and coffee. I'd be glad to find something of that quality and price here in California.

"I really don't want to buy bread and cheese and eat it in a park. My college days are well behind me."

That is too bad. Then you will miss some great experiences relaxing in the great parks or along the river. Putting together a wonderful meal from the little shops and local markets is a real treat.

77E a day for one person, no wine, should allow you to eat well. I suggest a good guide book like Sandra Gustafson's Great Eat in Paris. This is the book that used to be titled "Cheap Eats in Paris" so you can be assured that there are good budget recommendation.

While cheese in the park may be nice for lunch, so is Croque Monsieur in a cafe, with a warm or cold drink. There are so many cafes where you can have a nice lunch that doesn't cost much, leaving you a good amount to spend on dinner. It can be done easily.

You may also want to post here for dinner recs in the 35E range.

Merci les amis! I do like restaurants and cafe. Its seems that it can be done on 77 Euro

Of course I can eat in Paris for less than $100.00 US per day. It isn't even difficult to spend one week in Paris and spend less than that amount to eat for the whole week. Don't know whether I'm cheap or you eat too much.

Yes, you will find many restaurants serving nice meals that would keep you within your daily budget. But with 10 days, I would cut back to $50 a day on one or two days (easy to do--take away croissants for breakfast, sandwich for lunch and inexpensive dinner at a creperie, for example) and then do at least one splurge (or semi-splurge) with the extra cash. Since you don't drink wine and Parisian restaurants will readily supply you with free carafes of water, you're in good shape to stay within your budget!!

Hey BT,

>I would cut back to $50 a day on one or two days ...<

If she wants to enjoy herself, let her. :)

TW,

Keep in mind, you cannot make up for a lifetime of deprivation in only 10 days - you will get sick. :)

Now that the original poster's problem has been disposed of and the "challenge" met, perhaps we should turn to a related issue:

In Paris -- and in your home city or town -- many people have to LIVE on less than $100 a day PERIOD. And in the poorer countries of Europe, it's $100 per week. And in the world's least developed countries it's $100 per month.

My spouse passed through Paris last week -- on the way to Burkina Faso, West Africa. If you told the residents of Ouagadougou that you had come from a place where people debated how to dine on $100/day, they would simply stare at you in wonderment.

No guilt-tripping intended; just a sobering reminder of how most of the world has to live.

tedgale- If you look at it that way, how can any of us justify the ability to travel at all? Traveling is an absolute complete and total luxury some of us are blessed enough to be able to indulge in.

Travel is not necessarily a luxury. How would we know how much others earn and spend in order to live. Most of us who travel learn to see the world differently and realize that our preconceptions are all probably wrong. As much as I would like to live in a cocoon, "they" are not always wrong and me right. In fact it is probably 50/50, if I'm lucky.

for Doug, Travel can be educational and broadening to most people's perspective & I wouldn't give it up for the world (so to speak). But in reply to 'tedgale' I do consider travel a luxury if you are comparing lives with people who do not have enough to eat.

Hi travelwoman, I think you could get away with $100 a day but to make it quality rather than quantity I would pick either lunch or dinner out. As to eating in a park in Paris, I think that would be a gorgeous and decadant thing to do with nice bottle of wine, fresh fruit bread, pate and cheese and a good book but each to his or her own!

One of my most precious memories is the first night we were in Paris, Budman gave me the idea, we had to literally run to catch one of the little hourly tour boats at sunset, I think the boat cost about 6 euro each AND we used a E2 off internet coupon. We grabbed a bottle of champagne, some bread and pate and had a little picnic while watching the tower sparkle and light up. We went for lots of expensive dinners while we were in Paris but nothing compared to that lovely hour that cost maybe E50 total for two.

Aine: Did you have a picnic at the Bateau Bus boats that tours the Seine? I've never thought about doing it, it's just that it's interesting to know that they (the boat operator) allows picnicking.

In response to DougP and suze RE: how to reconcile travel with the needs of those less fortunate:

When I, a Canadian, first traveled to Ghana, West Africa in the mid-90s, I met an incredible Canadian woman, Kathy Knowles -- Winnipeg resident and fulltime mother of four. Kathy has chosen Ghana and literacy as her personal life-project.

Through Kathy, I became involved with her goal of setting up libraries (and literacy classes and micro-credit and more) for the children and illiterate women in Ghana.

Two new library buildings now commemorate my dear departed parents: the Nima-Maamobi Gale community library and the Mamprobi Gale community library, both in poor districts of Accra. In this, she and I were assisted by two of my brothers -- one of whom was Chair of Economics at NYU, the other Professor of Economics at Georgetown U in Washington, DC. (We are all Canadians but three of my siblings are expatriates -- the third is a sister, an MD and immunologist in Houston, TX)

If I hadn't traveled I would not have met Kathy and I would not have been sensitized to the horrible, grinding privation of the brave, resolute Ghanaian people.

"Sensitization" was not sufficient: Having seen their privation I had to help, when the way was shown to me. But really, I just cut a couple of cheques -- Kathy and the Ghanaians did the heavy lifting.

So that's my justification for travel.

Check out the project website at:
www.osuchildrenslibraryfund.ca

If you have an apartment & eat breakfast there, you will have plenty of $$s to eat out, and I bet you can survive on 50 Euros for lunch & dinner, if you forgo wine with every meal. (which I probably would not have the discipline to do). Lunch would be your flexible meal, with more reasonable alternatives. Even if you did a sit down dinner every single night, which you probably won't end up doing, $100 per day seems very generous. Have a blast!!

Thank you. I feel it can be done too. We might break down and prepare a coquille St Jacques or a poutine rapé.

Now that we have returned to the immediate question:

Travelwoman -- What is poutine rapee?

Most Canadians on this site will tell you that "poutine" is a French Canadian dish, generally sold from mobile vans and the subject of endless jokes. (Cheese curds, gravy and I don't know what all). AKA death by cholesterol.

I thought poutine, in its Canadian version, takes its name from the term in "joual" (Quebec slang) for "mess".

Is this the same dish and is it really sold in France???????

tedgale, you forgot the FRENCH FRIES! ;) But in New Brunswick (and elsewhere, I'm sure), there is another type of poutine. It's an Acadian dish and I've had it, but I can't remember the ingredients. I can only tell you that it's nothing like what most people know as poutine (which is so popular that I've even had "McPoutine" in a Quebec McDonald's.)

Reply to Taylor-made: Hi there, we went to Paris for last Valentine's Day weekend and I was looking for ideas on this board. I got great advice and Budman gave me this website. I am a nervous ninny when it comes to "chancing" anthing so I emailed the cruise line and asked them if it was permitted to bring our own wine etc. on board, they assured me that we were welcome to. They also sell wine and snacks in a little bar before you board but you do not have to purchase from there. We went to the gourmet section of one of the large department stores, I think it was Galleries Layfette and bought delicious things. Anyway I posted this when I got back, it might be helpful:

"we were just in Paris and got great advice on cruises. We loved the Pont Neuf cruise line and you can even print a E2 coupon each off http://www.vedettesdupontneuf.com - they were totally familar with the coupon and took it without hesitation. Also, you can BYO and snacks on this one. Look out for the Nicholas wine stores (sign has yellow writing on burgundy background) borrow a couple of glasses from your hotel and go around 5:30pm - the cruise will just pull up for the first lighting up of the Eiffel Tower at 6:00 - magic!"

It was really lovely! Cheers, Anne

A couple of years ago, there was a story about a young man from sub-Sahra Africa (can't remember which country) who was about to graduate from the Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. He was from a small village, but is very bright and comparatively well educate.

On the flight from his home country to the USA, he was the first person in his row to get his airline meal tray. When he saw how much food there was, he thought his tray was intended for all three people in his row.

my company s travel policy gives me an allowance of EUR 50.00 per day for food in France. i have no problem staying within this amount and many days come out considerably ahead.

while working,however, i usually just have wine with dinner and lunch is usually functional rather than a culinary experience.

Thanks for that reality check Rufus, its easy to forget how lucky we all are. Here is another story just I just received from my husband who is at present in Haiti working:

"One story - there is a clean diner type resturant next door to HQ - I
ordered a roast chicken sandwhich. 15 minutes later I was given a ham
and cheese sandwich. I said I did not order that and the waiter
said 'but we do not have anything else right now -- maybe later'"

I know hubby felt the sting of that one, funny I was just posting earlier about him being a mad spender on vacation too.

Rufus - love your reply...
tw, if you are "cooking" breakfast in the apartment (more than fresh croissants, coffee and fruit?) and you can eat a light lunch, you can budget 50 euros for dinner and still have enough left over for museum entrances. You can enjoy a 3 or 4-course prix fixe meal or order a la carte. Find out-of-the way places and enjoy! In fact, if you find some good 25 - 35-euro dinners, you can splurge on some other days. Just cut corners on the other meals and you can indulge plenty - unless you are set on Michelin star restaurants - in which case I don't think you'd have asked the question in the first place. Bon appetit!

Just returned. It can be done especially cooking breakfast in. You might find you really can't eat two "big" meals a day. There are plenty of good places where you can eat for 20euros or less for either lunch or dinner. We found we wanted one "big" meal and another small one. We did eat breakfast in. I'd also suggest you hold out for good places you've either read about or heard about. We tried to stay mid range (under 30 euros)and ate some pretty mediocre food in Paris. I personally would save for some pretty lavish meals and eat at lower end places.

Here are some of my favorites:
La Mascotte in the 18th Fabulous shellfish. Lots of it(this is a big meal best taken at lunch in my opinion and you will spend more than 30 euros.)

Astier in the 11th. You can get a nice four course discovery menu dinner for 35 euros.The cheese course is grand.


And many other folks will post their favorites if you ask about good relatively inexpensive places to eat.


The museums have some good stuff(The D'orsay has a very nice cafe).