Looking for real Deals for Paris food...
 

Hello,

My husband and I are going to Paris for 2 weeks and then spending a week touring the north of France and the Loire.

We need BUDGET tips on restaurants in Paris.

We don't drink wine and we are staying in an apartment for the 2 weeks.

We consider a big night out spending 5o euros for the 2 of us for the supper and a small night out spending 30 euros for the 2 of us...Is there any hope for us?

Where did you find the best deals on restaurants? What did you like?

We plan on one big BIG NIGHT at 100 euros but that is only one night...We prefer to use our money for shopping...

Any suggestions???

HI
this is a current thread that has some suggestions, you can disregard the irrelevant mini-dramas

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34610871

Let me suggest also that you pick up a copy of Gustafson's book Great Eats in Paris. Not every place in there is dirty cheap, but many of them will fit your budget, and it's a very reliable resource for good-value places to eat.
Rick Steves's books also have suggestions.
A lot of cafes and bistros in Paris have
'menus' which means they offer a 3-course meal for a fixed price. Selections are limited, but they are less expensive deals than ordering a la carte, that is,ordering individual dishes from the full listing.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34519236

Here is the link to the Paris Superthread, everything you need to know about traveling to Paris.
You can also type Budget into the search box and come up with the numerous postings about eating for less in Paris.
Good luck~

If you really want to eat cheap in Paris, grab a bite at the street vendors for lunch. We did this many times and sat in the park on a bench and watched the people. You can get hot dogs in a baguette, ham and veggie baguette, crepes... We also always ate breakfast at the cafes. If you are staying in an apartment, consider making it an adventure and be like a local shopping at the fresh markets, patisseries, and butchers for your dinner.

oops, LOL, I meant 'dirt cheap' not 'dirty'.

If your apartment has a microwave, the Picard frozen food stores, all over Paris, sell prepared meals for 4 to 5 euros, that range from all right to very tasty (Cast of any memories of TV dinners, and do be sure to try the new "papillote de poulet marine au citron et legumes assorties"). Do this every second or third night, and use the savings to purchase better restaurant meals.

Read that "cast off" -- for dirt cheap French cooking.

Asian delis - you point at what you want, they make you a plate and heat it up for you...quite good...7-9€ for a meal.

Pizza, quiche, baguette sandwiches, little salads etc. at walk-up counters in the boulangeries.

Monoprix/Franprix for grocery/picnic items

Brasseries and casual cafes where you can order just one course or one dish rather than an expected 3-course meal.

Food court at the Louvre, overlooking the main hall

FLUNCH at les Halles for inexpensive edible food 'cafeteria' style.

These are great reviews...

My husband likes Middle East food and I love Greek...any recommendations?

Hi Photobear, I'm just curious if you have decided on an apt in Paris yet? My daughter and I are going in Feb./March 06 time frame and BUDGET is also a big factor for us and I am vacillating between apt. or hotel. thanks, lynda

Hi Pho,

Go to http://www.flobrasseries.com/resa/en/

You will get a 15% discount on the entire bill if you reserve onlne.

((I))

We have not decided yet as our travel dates are still up in the air...Can't wait to see when I can go...We are looking at the first 2 weeks of November but I want to hit Disneyland Paris for Halloween if we can swing it...I'll post as soon as we confirm.

Also, Husband is having surgery and if they call that it's time, we will postpone till the spring or November 2006...I would hate to do that but I might have to.

If we have to postpone till 2006, we will have 1 month of vacation though so that could be better...hummmmm. And we would take a Carribean Cruise in December instead (2005)

I wish I could finalize everything NOW...I am an over-planner.

We just ate at places near our hotel that we had spotted during the daytime, walking in various directions. Sometimes local bistro french style, another we liked was a chain Italian place (Mezza Luna). Also we saw a number of shops that had elegant deli to-go food available, like as part of a wine store, for instance.

There are several inexpensive Greek restaurants on Rue Mouffetard in the 5th arrondissement (a great village-like street, by the way). I ate at one but don't recall the name--apologies! Jardin d'Artemis on Rue Mouffetard gets good reviews. There is a list at the website below, and many are "budget." I'm with you on the level of expense I'm willing to incur for meals!!

http://trigmos.club.fr/Estiatoria.html

There re so many bistros and restaurants that offer prix fixe tourist menus that you should be fine though may have to hunt for those that will stay under your 15 euros pp limit; 25 pp should be fairly easy to do, especially if you like greek and middle eastern food. Since you don't drink wine, remember that ordering soft drinks or bottled water may actually be more expensive. Ask for a pitcher or water instead, which is usually free. Also, the notion of eating in the apartment a night or two is a good one. We did that a couple times after a long day of sightseeing, and it was actually nice. Of course, we didn't really cook as much as re-heat, but it was nice.

For your husband, search this site for couscous. There's a very good string on that. Or the Engizek, at 24 rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, in the 11th arrondissement, for Turkish-Kurdish food, around 20 euros per person. For affordable Greek cuisine, there's the Kasaphani at 122 avenue Parmentier in the 11th arrondissement, and Zagros, at 21 rue de la Folie Mericourt, also in the 11th, both authentic, with Zagros a little less costly.

The ethnic places sound great...

Thanks everyone.

If you like pizza, pasta, and other Italian food, head for Vesuvius. It's opposite the church of St-Germain-des-Prés on the boulevard of the same name and has decent food at reasonable prices. The menu offered French cuisine as well as Italian, and you'll see a lot of students eating there.

Just down the street is a good Chinese restaurant, and straight down on the left as you face Vesuvius is a Thai place.

For a splurge, head to the Bistro de Breteuil, on the Place de Breteuil. There you can have a 3-course dininer with a Kir royale to start with, a bottle of wine for 2, and after-dinner coffee for a big 31 Euros. The food is excellent, and there are quite a few choices within each course. If the weather is good, ask for an outside table.

You can have breakfast well at Paul's Boulangerie (several locations) or Le Pain Quotidien (ditto). LPQ does very nice lunches for moderate prices, with a wide variety of sandwiches, soups, and salads.

Hi Photobear,

As for ethnic places, one of my favorite inexpensive restaurants is also my favorite hotel in Paris, <b>H&ocirc;tel les Degr&eacute;s de N&ocirc;tre Dame</b>. They have excellent couscous probably due to the owner being Algerian. I paid 16&euro; one evening for a kir, couscous with merguez sausage &amp; a glass of red wine. I enjoyed it on the terrasse watching locals meander through the serence Square Restif de la Bretonne. It's extremely close to <i>N&ocirc;tre Dame</i> but not in a touristy section. Here's its website:
http://lesdegreshotel.monsite.wanadoo.fr/

And here's where I wrote up a review of it on Virtual Tourist along with a photo:
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/tp/101582/


Near <i>P&egrave;re Lachaise</i>, I dined at <b>La Boulangerie</b>, set in an old bakery, on my last night in Paris my last trip, April 2003. I paid 38&euro; for an a la carte meal of their house cocktail, gaspacho tomates, carr&eacute; d'agneau (saddle of lamb), 1/4 carafe of house wine, moelleux chocolat for dessert followed by caf&eacute; along with un carafe d'eau in a lovely blue wine bottle (free). However, that is a la carte pricing. They have set dinner menus of Entr&eacute;e + Plat + Dessert: 18&euro;

Their website:
http://www.restaulaboulangerie.com/

My comments:
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/tp/10301e/

You'll dine very cheaply at tea salons (salons de th&eacute;) if that's your thing. Two of my favorites are:
<b>Ladur&eacute;e</b> (they have several locations in Paris: rue Bonaparte in the 6th, on the Champs Elys&eacute;es, in near la Madeleine, and I think they've opened up a new place - you can find that on the link provided below):
http://www.laduree.fr/
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/tp/102c11/

<b>Ang&eacute;lina</b> (near the Jardin des Tuileries near the Louvre and around the corner from the rue de Castiglione, which leads to the Place Vend&ocirc;me.
http://www.angelina.fr/
This is the official website but for the moment it is &quot;site momentanement indisponible&quot; so you can read about it here:
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/tp/1012ad/

<b>Trumilou</b> - (near the H&ocirc;tel de Ville on the Right Bank facing N&ocirc;tre Dame) 24.50&euro; for duck &amp; vegetables in a light broth served in a copper pot (I forget its official name), quarter carafe of Sancerre blanc, cr&egrave;me caramel &amp; caf&eacute;.
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/tp/ff82d/

<b>L'&Eacute;t&eacute; en Pente Douce</b> (in Montmartre away from the crowds in another enclave of peace) Salade ni&ccedil;oise served with their hefty/dense homemade brown bread, a cheese platter &amp; glass of the very drinkable house wine for 16&euro;. The salad is huge, very filling, and the food is great especially considering the price. A friend of mine loves their Tourte de Bouef. I and a few others wrote about it:
http://tinyurl.com/88mku


Photobear, I also have an Inexpensive Paris Restaurants list which might help. Just e-mail me. Have a superb trip to Paris!


Many thanks to sunny16 who told me about tinyurl.com which shortens long URLs - it worked - thank you!