Taking one's own croissants to a cafe?
 

As a rather newer poster here, I have read many an entry before dipping my toes, so to speak, into the discussion pool

I see from several posters that it seems to be OK to visit a bakery in Paris, buy croissants, and bring them to a cafe to have with one's coffee.

Are you quite sure? Can you enlighten me with details or personal experience, please?

As always, with much appreciation for your input,

Charles

You must be joking. All cafes in Paris have trapdoors under the table that automatically spring open as soon your lips touch a bakery bought croissant.

Charles, you might be a "newby" but I am an "Oldy" who has been to Paris at least 20 times and I ,too, find that assertion a bit odd!

Most if not all cafes, bars, etc who offer coffee in the early morning also offer croissants, tartines, pain au chocolat, and if that is what I want I would purchase it from them..after all I am occupying one of their tables. It seems a bit like taking a Happy Meal into a restaurant and ordering a bottle of water!

It just seems incredibly rude to me!

Jody, so I guess sticking a couple of croissants from your "free" hotel breakfast in your fannypack and eating them later on the sly at a cafe is out of the question?

First off, I would never have a fannypack! And second I can afford to buy lunch!

Jody, me too, but I have seen more than a few folks "fill up" those gross bags before leaving the hotel.

I'm just wondering why, oh why, you'd want to do this?

For one thing, cafes procure their croissants from the very best bakeries. They may be priced a bit higher, but they're served on a lovely plate atop a placemat, with a napkin, and accompanied by that marvelous French butter and an assortment of fabulous confitures.

I don't see why this issue would be any different in any country. Why would a shop owner want you bringing a similar product from another store into their shop?

Would you bring a brown bag to your local cafe? I would assume not..the same goes for Paris.

I do see however why he has posted this! I've seen numerous posts where people do exactly that...I can't quite understand why one would do it!

If you want to eat on the cheap, buy at a bakery, including coffee, and return to your room. Or, in the summer, find a park bench.

If you want to eat a style, go to a cafe and have a seat at a table.

As a compromise, places like La Brioche Doree have great pastries. You buy at the counter and take your purchase to a table and eat it.

I suppose you could take a bag of something or other with you, buy coffee, and drink it with your goodies.

But La Briochee Doree has such good stuff, I am not tempted to buy elsewhere!!

Best strawberry tarts I found at less than skyrocket prices.

bob brown reminds me of getting up really early one morning, walking to Poilane and standing in line for out of the oven croissants, then back to the hotel, stopping for coffee at the little shop nearby and having breakfast in our room...

I would feel really awkward and rude if I took food to a cafe..

I would say --- it depends. I have done this, but only in really cheap neighborhood cafes (more like tabacs, or when I was a student there and lots of students were at tables). Also, I am not comfortable doing it unless I see someone else in the place doing it for the same reason others mention -- it's treating a cafe as a park bench or picnic table. Some cafes do not sell all the things others mentioned -- in fact, none of the ones I frequent sell anything at breakfast other than plain croissants. I like something else (croissants aux amandes are my favorite), so there is no way to get it other than bring it yourself. It is a lot cheaper, also. If I just wanted a plain croissant, I probably wouldn't bother, and would consider the extra fee owed to the cafe for the place.

There are plenty of places that are not regular cafes where you can buy a wider variety or even have your own stuff if you buy coffee because they are more "takeout" places and you may just sit outside at some picnic tables or something. They tend to be cheaper and have the same thing you want, anyway, though, so you would buy it there (Brioche Doree or places like that).

I have been in some rather upscale cafes, and never seen anyone do this, and I would have been uncomfortable trying it myself, so I didn't.

There's an old-fashioned term for this sort of suggestion: bad form.

Somehow this thread inspires an insane urge to buy some fish and chips and to take them into the Ritz...

Hi Charles,

As Christina mentions, it is possible if you are going to a place that doesn't offer croissants, etc.

Also, if you order a coffee at the bar, you are expected to drink it standing at the bar. You pay more for table service inside. You pay even more for table service outside.

((I))

It's very rude, don't do it. If you going to a place that doesn't offer croissants, and you want a croissant and coffee then why are you going to that particular place? Stop somewhere where you can purchase both of your items and don't make such a production out of something as simple as having a coffee & croissant.

Patrick, we're back to the misleading travel information.

"The jolly pub landlord will welcome visitors who bring their own beer"

Something I've seen which is a bit of a shocker - In Austria and Germany where a big breakfast buffet is usually included in the price - American groups, who eat all they can, but then take what they can away with them, not just in those dreaded multicolour fanny packs but in small rucksacks! Cheese, sausage, endless breadrolls and yoghurts get taken away. The Germans and Austrians just look on - mesmerised.

It's the frontier spirit, obviously. You never know what might happen before nightfall...