Food Costs
 

What can a family of 3 expect to spend for lunch & dinner while driving throughout France. We do not drink alcohol nor have expensive tastes.

Depends to some extent on the region, as well as your tastes, but if you're content with a nice sandwich or salad for lunch and a simple dinner, you could get by on 100 euros a day easily, and eat relatively well.

It's a shame you don't drink alcohol, actually ;;) Those sodas and juices and mineral waters often cost a good deal more than the local wine.

Amen StCirq...I suggest that you acquire a taste for wine while in France...it is different than American wine...I cannot explain why. Maybe someone else can. All I know is we drank a lot of vin, never felt loopy, and never got a headache. And it is so much cheaper than sodas!!!

I have to agree with both Mellen and wren..3 people could eat very well for 100E a day or even less , but that fancy water and coke add up! Let the kids drink tap and you try some wine!
If there is a particular reason you don;t drink wine , then stick to water yourselves! TAP WATER!

Or if you are Coke addicted , buy a bottle or 2 at a grocer's!

I was just looking over a bill from a recent trip to Paris..
1 night we had 2 starters, of goat cheese and tomatoes on a puff pastry base with fresh basil, then I had
couchon du lait ( roast suckling pig)
with coucous, and he had veal kidney with some accompaniments, I had cheese and he had some other sweet and a bottle of a really good clos luberon...total 66E!

I don't know where you live , but here , it would have cost twice as much ..if you could even find any of the items!

Am I the only one who is sort of amazed that when someone posts clearly saying "we do not drink alcohol", that so far all three who have responded have suggested that they SHOULD do so, or at least suggested they try?

By saying you don't have expensive tastes, I'd think that 100 euro is the top of the range if you are looking to not spend a lot. You can get by for half of that if you really work at it and you're just looking at eating for necessity, not for pleasure.

Patrick,
I, too, was surprised by the comments about how these people "should" drink wine. If someone says they don't drink, then they don't drink. End of story. They don't need to be talked into it. I realize that those who responded are probably just trying to point out the cost difference between wine, mineral water, soda, etc.; however, it can be offensive to someone who doesn't drink (for whatever reason) to be told that they should.

Oh, get a grip, you guys! No one is foisting unwanted drinks on anyone, just observing that the cost of soft drinks often exceeds that of local wine. Anyone in recovery (if that's your concern) has more than likely already learned to handle the well intended (or not) urging to imbibe, and if it's a religious preference, then they'll follow their own conscience.
Now... take a deep breath and give up that umbrage!

Alcohol always makes me thirsty so I usually end up having to buy water after drinking wine. In France you can ask for tap water, but it's not so easy to find in other countries. Don't feel pressured to drink alcohol just because you are in Europe.

I also took it to be "warning" the original poster that soft drinks are very expensive when ordered in a restaurant. Also if you go into a cafe and sit at a table the cost of your drinks will be more than if you stand at the counter. St.Cirq's estimate of 100E/day is pretty good, I think. Also the poster should be aware that breakfast (as we "Know" it) can be a relatively expensive meal, especially at hotels. They may want to look for a cafe near their hotel for that meal. Also all restaurants post their menus and prices so you can know exactly what you are dealing with--and tip is included.

Jody, where did you have that meal? We'll be there in February and your food sounded so good! (Maybe I'm just hungry??) It would be a nice place to look for.

wren wonders
>...wine while in France...it is different than American wine...I cannot explain why. Maybe someone else can. All I know is we drank a lot of vin, never felt loopy, and never got a headache. <

Look at the alcohol content. It is much lower in Europe.

Wow! Forget that 100 euro number. How much do you spend per day in the US? A benchmark can be McDonald's prices. Eat with locals. Buy at markets. Hotel food is expensive because it includes overhead costs. Restaurant food is expensive because it includes labor and profit. Your spending will depend on your choices!

alisonm..it was at Chez Fernand on Rue Christine in the 6th. We just happened upon it after leaving Rotisserie d'un Face one night and decided to try it later . It was excellent and we returned a second time and both had marvelous lamb!

Funnily enough when we got home , I was speaking with a Swiss friend of mine who visits Paris several times a year from Zurich and has a wonderful list of restaurants, and she told me that she had recommended it to me before!

They also have a Brasserie ,Brasserie Fernand on Blvd. Montparnasse, That is the one she goes to as she stays nearby.

We also had an excellent meal, but slightly, more expensive at Chez Julien..thanks to reco from Elaine and Patrick

Especially since you mention driving, check your guidebooks or ask around for locations of the open air farmers markets (they are held different days in different towns). You can buy amazing foods (cheese, bread, cured meats, spreads, fruits, vegetables) inexpensively, shopping alongside the locals.

It is true that soda pop costs as much or more than wine, but not particularly relevant to this thread (IMO).

Again ask around once you're in a new town for recommendations from local people, like whoever runs the place you're staying. Trying the family-style cafes that you might or might not find on your own is a great idea.

Another obvious is that the urban areas and cities will most likely be more expensive than countryside locales.

jody, thanks! We love lamb and I always try to have some during our Ireland jaunts. Since we will be trying to keep our food costs under control, this sounds like an excellent choice. My son gave me a Zagat guide for Christmas, but there is nothing like a personal recommendation!

Seamus, maybe it's you who needs to get a grip. Dmoore clearly said "We do not drink alcohol." What part of that didn't you understand? One response that said "try it" I would have ignored, but when all three first responses encouraged someone who clearly stated they don't drink alcohol to do so, it really seemed odd to me.

When someone says, "We do not eat meat" I suppose you then tell them how good meat is and how they should try it? Or if someone says, "we don't bicycle", I suppose you feel it's up to you to explain to them they need to change their ways and do so?

Jody: anymore restaurant recommendations; we are going to Paris next weeK. Thanks!

Exactly what do you consider "not expensive taste"? I ask because I always thought of myself as not really having taste until I started comparing myself to many others and though I don't have outrageously expensive taste, it turns out that compare to many, I do have expensive tastes. It's all relative. Example: I don't think that spending $4 - 5 for a drink is that expensive, I don't think it's cheap but I don't think it's outrageous. I think spending $25 for one for a good meal is also reasonable, though others think $10 is reasonable.

Though St Cirq's estimate is fine, you may want to define not expensive. After reading 100 Euros you may think Wow, does he think we're made of gold, or you may think, what a cheapo.

First of all, I really am sorry if was insensitive to dmoore.

Second: Are you sure about that alcohol content Ira? The Chateauneuf de Pape that we brought back last summer is 14%. We did bring one French wine that was 12.5, but most of them seem to be 13.5%. All the American and Aussie wines that we have are in that same range as well.

I think 100 euro is a reasonble and fairly modest amount to spend per day for a family of three. That is for all food for three people, after all. The OP didn't ask how can I keep my food budget at 75 euro per day or things like that, just an idea of cost. St Cirq said that one could eat fairly well and easily on that amount, and I agree.

I will have to challenge Ira on that alcohol content also, as I don't think it's true. All the wines I have in my wine cellar are 12-14 pct alcohol, regardless of country of origin (Australia, Chile, Italy, France or US). I know many French wines are about 12-14 pct alcohol. France really regulates labelling and names of wines so maybe Ira is refering to cheap table wine as that has less alcohol in France, and by regulation, you can't put the AOC or AC appellation on a bottle if it doesn't meet a minimum alcohol content. Wine labeled "table wine" hasn't met the standards, one of which is alcohol content.

I like Cotes du Rhones wine so know that bottles just labeled that have lower alcohol content than the ones that can be called "Cotes du Rhones Villages".

I don't find affecting me any differently in France than at home, at least nothing I've noticed, maybe because even in France, I often will drink wine with names, not just something that can be called "table wine." I don't know much about this, but I think some people have ideas that sulfites have something to do with how wine affects you and maybe French wine drunk in France does not have as much sulfites as US wine, I don't really know.

I'm sort of with Patrick on thinking it's odd to urge people to drink alcohol who have simply flatly said they don't drink it. If DMoore wondered how it compared in cost to other drinks, and asked, that would be different. A lot of people just don't drink alcohol much (a lot of my relatives, actually) and it isn't because they are in recovery, they just never have. I think just saying, too bad you don't drink it as it's pretty good and cheap, is different then urging someone to start drink and telling them they should make it a project to start acquiring a taste for it.

Ill be in europe next week and i am very curious when u say the Soda is expensive how expensive is it??? COuld someone give me a price range?

I can't say what a soda would cost..never having ordered on..I don't drink them at home.

But I do know I was having a 3 E glass of house wine while my friend drank and 8E glass of orange juice!

Sounds like a thread or two on wine might be very interesting and receive a lot of hits...

dmoore 189: Cost is relative, as other posters have stated already. But I can share how we kept costs down. You did not say how long you were going to be in France, so I don't know if it would be cost effective to do what our family of four did--Upon arrival in France, we purchased a small butane camping gaz, a small quart-sized pan, and a cheapo cup and silverware set per person. An initial shopping trip at a less expensive Supermarche/Hypermarche bought the essentials: mustard/jelly/butter/coffee/tea/hot choc. and instant soup packets/paper towels etc.

Breakfast was purchased as we left the hotel each morning at a local boulangerie/patisserie. After a little drive, we stopped in the country, heated up the butane for tea, hot chocolate or instant coffee and enjoyed the scenery before heading off down the road. Because we stayed off the autoroute, preferring the more scenic byways. we easily picked up picinic goodies for lunch as we passed through small towns. Always fresh, always tasty and certainly less expensive than restaurant dining. We sometimes made hot packaged soups, which hit the spot if the weather was cold (as it was in May and September) If we didn't settle into a hotel early on, we also took an afternoon break. Always kept store-bought cookies/fruit on hand in case we didn't hit another town for fresh treats. Dinner we always dined out, even though it was more expensive. (it seems to me though lately there's less of a price break for lunch vs. dinner in rest.) Obviously, it wwould have been less enjoyable (but do-able) minus the butane at night.

Hints for cheaper restaurant eats: go where the truckers eat! Always affordable and while maybe not gourmet, almost always better than what you get in the States. McDonald's is NOT your friend, except if you're dying for a soda pop with ice. In the heat, we found it worth the money to buy one large and refill it with supermarche-bought litre pop. You can also get all kinds of fruit juices either in bottles or in cartons. If you have any French skills at all, at the supermarket try asking the meat/fish clerk for some ice (la glace) for camping...sometimes they offered to put some in a plastic bag for us w/o charge. We felt like we hit the mother lode at those places! (Small local stores can't do this for your so don't even try.) Creperies are cheap as long as you keep to the simpler (and tastier IMO) crepes w/o all the sauces AND you don't have huge appetites where you'd end up ordering so many you might as well have eaten at a rest.
Cider is the traditional drink for crepes and if you ask for Cidre DOUX (pronounced like the do in "do you") you'll get the slightly bubbly, non-alcoholic version.

Bon appetit!

I'm sorry also if I offended anyone, but I never suggested that dmoore take up drinking, just pointed out that if keeping food costs down was an issue, drinking wine can save a lot over the alternatives. A simple glass of Coke can cost 3-5 euros, and that's as much as, say, one of my kids needs for a nice sandwich for lunch. Also, there ARE people who just have never had a glass of wine for reasons not associated with addiction or religion - and who might want to use a trip to France to try it out.

If someone had said "I don't eat meat" and, in fact, the alternatives to eating meat were a lot cheaper, and the poster were looking to save money, yes, I might have pointed out that eating meat could save them 30 € a day. Obviously that's not true, but I trust you get my point.

And ira, I also disagree about the alcohol content. I have never seen a noticeable difference in alcohol content between France and the US. Sulphur content, tannin content, maybe, but not alcohol content. Still, there is this somewhat mysterious sense that a lot of people, myself included, have that they can drink more wine with less effect when in Europe. I don't think it's chemistry, just the fact that they are on vacation and less stressed and meals are stretched out longer.

dmoore--remember that restaurant prices in France represent a total: no taxes added to the bill and no tip required. Service compris is quasi universal, no need to ask.

St.Cirq: Good California wines tend to have a higher alcoholic content than French wines. My French friends could not understand why the wine here affected them that much until I pointed out that they were drinking 14.5% wines.

California grapes, over the last few years, have had high sugar content which equates to high alcohol. This year's brix on cab, syrah, and merlot, depending upon region, have been 27-28 which equates to high alcohol content in the wine. ((b))