Restuarants / Cafes in Paris
 

I am leaving to Paris in two weeks. I will be staying there for a week. Any recommendations for restaurants / Bistros that have good food, good ambiance and reasonable prices?
I do not mind going to expensive restaurants a couple of nights, but I want (20-30 Euros / person) dinner for the rest of the nights. Also any good places for lunch?

The following is our list from our last two visits to paris - autumn 2003 being the latest. The cost is for two persons- we don't drink more than 1/2 bottle of wine, and do tend to order menus. Our two favorites are Chez Maitre Paul and Au Gourmet de l'isle. We go to the latter our first night. It is very user friendly for Americans.
Have a wonderful trip.

1.Zephyr, 1 rue de Jourdin (20th $62) excellent but smoky
2. Cote Seine, quai Grand Augustin, excellent food, a bit too touristy - no smoking side - $75
3. La Soummam (couscous rest), 25,rue de Grand Augustin $45
4. au bascou (3rd) 38 rue Reamur Basque food - we enjoyed this bistro
5. Brasserie de L?ile St-louis (4th) 55 Quai bourbon - if you like Brasserie food with a neighborhood atmosphere, this was good. We ate pork so don?t know about anything else.
6. Au Gourmet de l?isle, 45 rue St-Louis about $50 for both of us
7. Chez Maitre Paul,12 rue Mons le Prince about $50 for both of us
8. Astier 44 rue JP Timbaud : crowded, good value, excellent cheese tray.
9. Baracane 38 rue de tournelles, very nice small bistro
10. L?argenteuil 9 rue Argenteuil : excellent, pretty restaurant, smaller portions, but definitely worth going to.

Mon Dieu! There have been so many threads about Paris restaurants. Just do a search above on "restaurants Paris" or "bistro" or "cafe". You'll be overwhelmed with suggestions.

You might also want to search on the area of your hotel, e.g. "5th" or "Latin Quarter". I would think you'd get lots of dining threads doing that.

We discovered a place called "Low Riders". It is on the Rue De Rivoli, in the Marais district. The food is just ok and the prices are slightly high, but the venue is "what you read about". Buy a carafe of the "Maison Rouge" and watch the parade.

Le March in Place St. Catherine in the 4th near Place des Vosges has a 'neighborhood' feel to it. It is small so you might want to go early (i.e. 6:30 - 7:30). Food was very good, and you can easily purchase 2 dinners with wine for under 35 Euros for TWO people!

Le Bistrot de Paris has a very nice decor, great food, good portions, and reasonable prices. It's located on rue de Lille in St. Germain (7th district). I went at dinnertime and not lunch but I'd think it's just as good at lunchtime.

Le Grand Cafe at 4 boulevard des Capucines near the Opera Gardiner has great food, wonderful ambience (all stained glass walls, ceiling), and friendly, great service.

Where are you staying? We stay in the 6th and usually only eat there or in the 7th or 4th..as we don't want to metro or cab..just eat! And wherever you are staying there will be loads of bistros nearby.

Highly recommend "Bistros of Paris" by the Hamburgers and the Routard guide. Worth every penny for the terrific descriptions and recommendations.

Pricier, but also well worth it, is the Leed's Good Guide, which you can download, highlight those of interest, and print out to bring along with you.

In reply to the post above about a place called Low Riders, I can't imagine why anyone would recommend a place that has food that is "just OK" and has prices that are "slightly high" when there are hundreds of other places in Paris with fantastic food and reasonable prices.

There is a fairly new book called "Paris by Bistro/A Guide to Eating Well" by Christine and Dennis Graf. It features the authors' reviews of inexpensive to moderately priced bistros in almost all neighborhoods. Plus they also give you the history of some of these bistros.

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Wow.. I am so impressed.. I posted this message yesterday afternoon and now I have tons of restaurant names! Thank you!

One of my favorite places to go for Creme Brulee in Paris is Le Train Bleu inside the Gare de Lyon train station. Don't let the place fool you, it is full of atmosphere and actually a bit pricey. Should you decide to go there, you must go up the wrought iron steps to enter the restaurant. The outside seating is nothing...but inside...well...just get ready to be blown away at the beauty. Worth the money and an out of the way stop at the train station.

A very good, long-time bistro is Au Petit Marguery, in the 13th. The atmosphere and service are great, as is the food.