Bonjour,

Is it acceptable to share a dinner in Paris? My husband and I are not hugh eaters and always share a dinner and have a dessert or an appetizer with a bottle of wine of course. Is this practice acceptable in Paris?

Merci,

Karen

I do not think it is common for people to share dinners as I've never seen anyone do that. Maybe it's acceptable, but honestly to me it really doesn't look good. You should both order something no matter how small. When I ate at Le Coupe Chou an American couple dined at the same time. The husband ordered a full course meal, but the wife ordered only a fruit salad. The waiter thought she meant a green salad at first. I overheard the wife talking about a special diet she's on for health reasons.

Not really, especially if you choose a prix-fixe meal: those are designed for just one person. You'll find that French portion sizes are not what we're used to in the U.S., for the most part.

It is probably a more acceptable idea to share the entree or a dessert, than the main dish.

ie. you order entree/main and spouse orders main/dessert, and you both order beverage

Note that, usually, portions are meant for one, not 'supersized' as we fed in the US.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34583900

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34408810

yes, I do think it would not be that unusual to share an entree or dessert -- if you were in a somewhat expensive restaurant and they were priced a la carte, of course. If it were prix fixe, there would be no point to sharing unless you were going to try to take two people in and order one dinner. no, you couldn't do that.

I have never seen someone sit by and take up two chairs at a table in a regular restaurant in Paris and only order for one (meaning everything). Some restaurants that have a lot of tourist trade even get bold and put forbidden practices on the menu. I have seen more than once (which would not allow the thing above): "no salads as meals." They got tired of that. These are more bistros and restaurants, of course, not cafes where they shouldn't care at all what you order.

Which brings up why the necessity to do this in a regular restaurant rather than places where it is appropriate, like a cafe.

It is not acceptable to take up a table for two and order one dinner. The portions in Paris are wonderfully manageable. Also, do not ask for a doggy bag. Eat what you can and enjoy it, or go to take-out type places.

I'm curious to know. Is OP asking this question because in USA (I suppose she is American.)you can usually order one dinner for two and share at restaurants?

To quote the great Yogi Berra, I am getting deja vous (sp) all over again. This *identical* query was discussed at length within the last year. Try using the search engine to see if you can find it.

And while you may request anything you want, I think it is better not to attempt to share in Paris.

On a fixed price menu it would definitely not be acceptable. I personally don't think it is proper manners in a fine dining restaurant either. If you want to share and eat of each others plates I would stick to cafes or more casual places.

I just topped that thread. But it was specific to two people sharing a fixed price meal.

Thank you all for your response. To answer kappa's questions - yes I am an American and my husband are not interested in eating massive quantities of food that is served in almost all of our restaurants - casual or fine dining. We do not like to stuff ourselves so full that we cannot enjoy the rest of our evening without going and lying down to try to get over the fullness. Appetizer bars are our favorite places to go. I assume an appetizer bar in Paris would be something like a cafe - I am unsure as I have not been there.

I suggest you try ordering two normal dinners in Paris to see the portions. I don't recall ever being stuffed full from a restaurant meal there.

I'm not sure where you live or what kind of places you go to at home but I can't think of the last time I was served what I'd consider "massive quantities of food" at an upscale restaurant in the US.

Hi kp,

One does not usually share.

However, if you were to order 2 Prix Fixe dinners (appetizer and main or main and dessert) it is acceptable for one of you to have the former and one the latter and share those.

As noted, portions in Paris are generally smaller than in the US. However, on our 2004 visit we noted that they were larger than they had been in 2001.

Hi Karen
Since you asked, I agree that it is not done in any restaurant, perhaps its okay at snack bars and such. If you are ordering a la carte,
you do not have to order appetizers (entrees) and desserts are often shared.

You can certainly do it at cafes or brasseries - but in a better restaurant you should not be sharing. (Unless it's of the I don;t want to eat desert but I'll have one bite of his variety.)

And the portions will usually be smaller than in the US. I doubt you would find yourself stuffed by dinner - unless you've already had a big lunch - or are eating dinner at 6 in the afternoon.

I think you'll find the portions so much more reasonable in Paris, as elsewhere in Europe. Not like in the States where food is piled onto plates. If you want to eat light, I'd suggest you skip the appetizer and dessert, focusing on the main course.

And, as someone else said, don't ask for any left-overs to take with you, as in Paris they simply aren't prepared with containers for take-out and they can't easily package anything for you.

Just order wisely, eat it all and enjoy every bite!

>...they can't easily package anything for you [to take home].

I've seen them wrap up leftovers in aluminum foil and make it look like a swan.

Dinners are not shared in Paris; if you take up two seats, you need to order for two people. The portions in Paris are much smaller than they are in the United States, so you won't have any problem even if you are not huge eaters.

Reminder that an 'appetizer' is the "entrée" in France (in the US, the entrée is the main dish, don't know why).

I've not heard of an appetizer bar, but maybe that is something like 'tapas'..? There are wine bars in Paris, serving wines by the glass and sampler plates of cheeses, meats, maybe salads...

Maybe some rare places will do that, Ira, but you have to admit that's not the norm in Paris. Most places don't have take-out containers, and other places don't have the talent to create swans! They really prefer not to deal with it at all.
We were in the unfortunate situation of asking a couple of places to package left-overs for us. Because our teenage son can't seem to eat a meal all at once-- he likes to 'graze', eating mini-meals often, so he loves left-overs. (He's literally been this way since infancy, can't change him now!) Which didn't work in Europe at any city we've visited so far. Just my advice to avoid it if you can.