dina4

I would love to avoid the expense of calling France from the U.S., but we're staying in an apt (no concierge) and I'm having trouble finding email addresses for some of the restaurants in which we hope to eat!

Is there some kind of website like OPEN TABLE that does online reservations?

btw, here's my list in progress
(thanks to all you fodorites who helped me narrow it down):

Chez Denise (Tour de Montlhéry)
Le Tartine
Café des Musees
Restaurant Le Hangar
Dome du Marais
L'Ardois

Cafe Constant
Mon Viell Ami
Chez L'Ami Jean
La Rotisserie du Beaujolais
Petite Pontoise
Itineraires

I would appreciate any tips/advice!
Thanks!

Leely2

Dina, you can try toptable.com, but most of these places you will need to call. If you're interested in Le Gaigne (not on your list but on mine), I know you can book via toptable--but you can also use their website, so...

I have a card for Café des Musees in my wallet, just noticed it the other day. I believe I stopped by for a quick lunch and drink on my way to the Picasso museum last time I was in Paris. I don't think you need to reserve far in advance for it at all, unless you're thinking Saturday dinner or something. Even then I'd be surprised. I think you could easily do that while in town. It's L'Ami Jean and Itineraires I'd get moving on if you're set on a particular night--lunch might be easier; I'm not sure.

Bite the bullet and call a couple places, your musts. They will be short calls.

[This is easy for me to say, as I recently asked a Parisian to make all my reservations for me.]

Bon courage!

4ddawgs82

Are you working through an agency? Have them make the calls for you. Or as Leely says it will be a short phone call or you can fax them and then follow up with a phone call.

Just ask if they speak English ( in French ). My French is mediocre at best and I can do it so I am sure you can too!

dina4

We're booking through Vacation in Paris. I'll ask them if they can make the reservations for us.

I'll also check toptable.com

I'm only hesitant to call because i made two overseas calls last month to airlines based in europe (there online sites wouldn't take my credit card), and each call ended up costing me about $30. ouch!

thanks!

greg

I think you need an international call advice.

I use two cheap ways to call Europe. There are literally many other ways to call Europe for few cents/minutes.

1. Skype. I have a Skype out credit, so I call practically anywhere around the world for few cents a minutes.

2. International phone card from Costco. I think they charge around $0.06/minute. I use this method when I can't use my computer.

As for restaurants, even for restaurants that can be reserved online/email(more common), I still have to call them at some point. They usually want to get a call on or before the last business day before the reservation for a confirmation.

Sarastro

I think greg has the right idea. Obviously you have Internet access so now all you need is an inexpensive headset/mic (about $10 at newegg.com for at Fry's) and an account at Skype (I prefer an open source choice such as Ekiga) and you can call any land line in France for about 6 cents a minute.

It might be interesting to note that when calling any cell phone in France (numbers starting with 06), the per minute costs may rise dramatically and can reach almost 30 cents a minute.

valtor

To call overseas, use www.poketalk.com
This give you 50 FREE calls per month, each of them of 10 minutes. You enter this site, write there your phone number and where you call and then you speak from your phone.

dina4

that's all great advice!
i can't believe i didn't know this stuff.
thank you.

the poketalk.com sounds especially fantastic! free?!

valtor, have you used it yourself?

janisj

I use a 10-10 access number for all my international calls from the US. Just pennies a minute. The # I use is 1010-987 - but another one might work best for you/your carrier.

I call the UK and France all the time from my landline - just made 2 calls this AM - and seldom pay more than $1 - usually a lot less. Much cheaper than most calling cards

dina4

janisj -- how does that work exactly? how do you find the 10-10 access code for your area?

ira

Hey dina,

All of the "dial around" numbers are good anywhere in the US.

Google "dial around"

ira

I recommend www.startec.com as a long distance carrier.

There are no fees other than for the calls you make.

They are cheaper than the 1010 numbers.

There is no connection fee.

ira

PS
you can use startec from more than one phone.

gracejoan3

The 1010 numbers cost about 65 cents for normal reservations calls.

I did notice Cafe Constant on your list. They do not take reservations..unless groups of 5 or more.

I am in Paris now for a month. I had no trouble making those that needed to be made in advance.

Joan

valtor

Yes Dina, I use poke talk very often, from my home / office to speak overseas. There are some calls that save me a lot of money.
Since I discovered Poke talk , I did not travel yet abroad, so I did not use it yet with my mobile phone.

dina4

Thanks so much everyone!
i think i'm in good shape now to make smarter calls to europe!

ssander

Cheapest phone card I know of is Union telecard's Europe Blue Card:

http://www.uniontelecard.com/

~3 cents/min to many places in Western Europe (incl. France)

No connection fee

No maintenance fee

You can auto-recharge by phone when your balance gets low

Toll-free access number in US and many other countries (unfortunately not France)

They come in various denominations (5$, $10, $20).

6-month expiration date from first use.

I've used these for years.

SS

ssander

One more thing...

The Union telecard is not really a physical card...just an account no. and PIN that they email you within minutes of buying online.

SS