My cousin and I have tix to the ballet on a Fri. in Dec.; it begins at 7:30, over around 9:30. Kinda early to eat before and kinda late afterwards. Any suggestions?
I suppose we could have something late in afternoon at a salon de the and a "snack" later. How do theater-goers do this? I was surprised that it begins so early. We are staying in the 6th, but some place near the Opera would be fun. Thank you!

I really like Le Grand Cafe (des Capucines). It's about, oh, 2 blocks from the Opera Garnier. It's not haute cuisine, but the food was surprisingly good, and, considering its location, it was surprisingly not a tourist trap. Their carte is large, many choices. Great onion soup. I'm pretty sure they have continuous food service all day.

Grandmere,
I cannot recommend somewhere to eat in the area but suggest you go to one of the side street cafes.

I was there last month and went to the Cafe De La Paix which is opposite the Opera House.

There were 3 of us and we had a pastery and a coffee each. We stupidly didn't check the prices before ordering and the bill was 53.50 euro!

It was OK but have had better in Paris for much less.

Another vote for Le Grand Cafe. Just walk down to Blvd des Capucines and go left.

I like the Grand Cafe, also, so that's three. I like that the Opera Garnier starts at 7:30 -- too many performances of any kind (theater, concerts, ballet, etc.) run from around 8 to 11. That really makes it difficult to eat for me, as I don't ever like to eat dinner at 6 or so. This is the pattern in every city I've ever been in -- I've always wondered why they don't start earlier, like around 7, so people can eat afterwards at a somewhat decent hour. That must be a relatively short ballet, which makes it even better. If it began at 8, that really wouldn't be any better as many restaurants don't open until 7:30.

I usually do have some kind of snack late afternoon and then a light snack or dinner afterwards.

I've had a light snack at Cafe de la Paix beforehand -- inside. I don't like the outside area that much because it's too crowded, full of tourists, and there isn't much of a sidewalk. Cambe must have had quite an expensive dessert or have ordered a lot to spend that much, as I didn't. It is expensive in comparison to many modest places, as you'd expect for a famous hotel restaurant like that in the Opera area, but I know a glass of wine wasn't priced that unusually high (maybe 7 euro or so). I believe I had a salad and a glass of wine there before the ballet and I know it didn't cost an outrageous amount or I wouldn't have order it--I never order without looking at prices and the carte. I think they have prix fixe lunches and dinners around 40-45 euro. It's really a lovely room and they were very gracious to me, it was a nice experience. YOu go there partly for the experience and ambience and decor, though, not just to get a cheap bite. I think the prices out on the sidewalk may be higher, and the ice cream sundaes may be around 8 euro out there, as I recall--because a lot of tourists like to sit out there because it is famous and it's a prime location. A lot of top cafes charge around that for a sundae, though.

I went to Le Grand Cafe my first visit to Paris many years ago, and I'd kind of forgotten about it since I've spent more time on left bank in recent trips. A great idea! Thanks all, and cambe, I will avoid Cafe de la Paix.

In case we don't want a full dinner after the ballet, would it be inappropriate to just order wine, soup, and perhaps a dessert at Grand Cafe?