How to save money on food in expensive Paris. We recommend a cafe with good reviews, where you can have an inexpensive and tasty meal. Prices, addresses and advice.
How to eat in Paris for 5-10 € per day
France is a land of great cuisine that is definitely worth exploring at least a little. But if the budget is modest, you have to get out. We have found a way to eat deliciously and inexpensively in Paris. You will not last long on such a diet, because it will get bored, but at least a few days or a week you can live!
So, if the prices in restaurants make you feel sick (for lunch a la carte you will have to spend at least 15-20 €), then with a confident step move towards a large supermarket, for example, Lidl. There you will find a lot of good quality prepared or semi-prepared food. All you need is a microwave.
We recommend what we often take ourselves:
- French vegetable puree soups, 2 servings - € 1-2.
- Meat dish of local cuisine - 2.5 €.
- Baguette - from 0.3 €.
- Sausages or cutlets for a couple of meals - € 1.5-3.
- Instant noodles - 0.5 €.
- Cheap wine - from 1.5 €.
- Jamon, cheeses - 1-2 €.
- Flan, 4 pcs. - 2 €.
- Ready-made salads - 2-3 €.
- 2 grilled legs with potatoes - 4 €.
From these products, you can make hearty and delicious breakfasts, lunches and dinners. All of this requires little or no cooking and time-consuming. Convenient and very cheap!
Where to buy. The cheapest stores are Lidl and Leader Price. Products at Franprix, Carrefour, Auchan, Casino, Champion, M&S and Monoprix are slightly more expensive. Picard is a little expensive but has very interesting ready-made frozen food.
While walking have a snack at Franprix... Two chicken legs with potatoes - 4 €, a hearty salad that you collect yourself - 5-7 €. The store has a snack corner: there is a table, spoons / forks, napkins and even sockets.
Of course, this is an option for the most economical or for "fasting" days, in order to reduce the overall expenses for the entire vacation. Not everyone is ready to save so tough. We combined it like this: we had breakfast with groceries from the supermarket, at lunchtime we ate an inexpensive business lunch (€ 10), and we dined again with groceries from the store. If they stayed at home, they also dined with prepared food from Lidl. It turns out ultra-cheap. So we spent in Paris on food in 9 days only 220 € for two!
Buy wines in supermarkets, check them through the Vivino app to find the best. There are normal wines even for 2-4 €. And according to the action, you can grab very interesting options for 10-25 €, which in Russia cost 5000 rubles per bottle. One thing is sad that in no French apartment we have found the right glasses for red wine, only brutal glasses that do not allow good wine to open up.
Business Lunches
Menú du Jour / Formule - look for such signs at lunchtime. In our opinion, these are business lunches. With the help of them, you can not only eat tasty and inexpensively in restaurants in Paris, but also taste national dishes: onion soup, mussels in wine, Burgundy beef, duck and others.
To save on food in Paris, we looked for inexpensive business lunches. The cheapest one we have found - for 9.5 € in the Latin Quarter! On average, Menú du Jour costs 13-23 €, but this is far from the limit. Seen for 50 € and 100 € in prestigious restaurants.
We met a lot of truncated business lunches where only appetizer and main course or main course plus dessert are served. Often this Menú du Jour costs 10-15 €.
If you don't want a whole business lunch, take the dish of the day - plat du jour... Also a chance to taste the national cuisine inexpensively!
At Menú du Jour, instead of a drink, take a dessert - water in a decanter will be brought to you for free.
Asian cafes
Do you want a quick, tasty, satisfying and inexpensive meal in Paris? A safe bet is Asian restaurants and cafes. Their set menu is valid all day and costs 10-12 €. A hearty set of sushi and rolls costs 10 €. A huge plate of Pho Bo or other noodle soup - 6-8 €. It's not even a plate, but practically a basin - fill up to the dump. By the way, it is the Vietnamese who speak English best in France.
Why fast? Because Asian cafes often operate like a canteen, they don't have an à la carte order, so you don't have to wait. And the checkout line moves quickly.
Where to eat deliciously and inexpensively in Paris
It is unforgivable to visit the capital of France and not taste the local cuisine. We have selected the best inexpensive cafes and restaurants to eat in Paris. The establishments were selected with high ratings and good reviews.
Flunch
Popular bistro chain where you can eat cheaply in Paris. The main hot dish costs 5-10 €, and side dishes and salads after payment can be taken for free and in unlimited quantities. Sauces and water are also free, but desserts and drinks are paid separately.
They have promotions and great business lunches. For example, a crazy promotion - 5 dishes with a drink at the price of 8 €! Addresses: one at the center of Pompidou - 19 Rue Beaubourg, the other at 1-3 Rue Caulaincourt.
Leon de bruxelles
Here you can eat very tasty and inexpensive seafood in Paris - the cafe specializes in the freshest mussels and fish. Business lunch "mussels + dessert" costs 16-23 €. The portions are large. This is a chain of restaurants, there are several of them in the city.
Some addresses: 131 Boulevard Saint-Germain, 63 Av. des Champs-Élysées, 30 Boulevard des Italiens.
Bistrot victoires
In the center of Paris, next to the Palais Royal, there is a bistro where you can eat tasty and inexpensive food. Dishes for 10-11 €, desserts - 5 €, giant salads - 8 €, a glass of wine - 3 €. The portions are really big, you won't go hungry. Add friendly staff, beautiful interior and generally pleasant atmosphere - and you will understand where so many good reviews and a crowd of visitors come from.
Address: 6 rue de la Vrilliere, 8:00 am to 11:30 pm on weekdays, weekends from 10:00 am.
Le Bar a Soupes
The institution is located near the Place de la Bastille. Specificity - soups, at least 6 types every day. They cost 6 €, and desserts at 3 €, which is very cheap. It is possible to take the Formule set lunch - soup, appetizer / dessert and drink - for 14 €. Locals take out a business lunch for € 10.
Address: 33 Rue de Charonne.
Paris Follie's
A hidden gem in the heart of Paris. Best budget restaurant with large portions! Everything is very delicious. Tourists advise the confit duck for 11 €. Main courses cost 11-13 €, brunch 16 €. You can eat together for 20-25 €.
Address: 74 avenue Kleber. Located between the Trocadero and the Arc de Triomphe.
La Bécane À Gaston
Enjoy traditional French cuisine in Paris at this restaurant near Place de la République. Tourists wonder how the chef manages to cook such a simple meal incredibly tasty. Here you can taste good onion soup and snails. Prices are average: brunch costs € 21-24, menu of the day € 24-29.
Address: 24 rue Lucien Sampaix.
OKA
An inexpensive Michelin-starred restaurant in Paris is real. Be sure to try the haute Brazilian-French cuisine with intricate presentation and unique flavor! The peculiarity of the institution is the open kitchen, where the chef cooks in front of the visitors. A 4-course lunch costs € 45, a 6-course lunch € 65. Not bad for a Michelin-starred restaurant, huh?
Address: 1 rue Berthollet.
Where in Paris you can have an inexpensive drink
Redd
Wine restaurant in the Opera area. An extensive wine list, many types of cheese for every taste, there is even a beer from the local brewery.
Address: 28 Rue Saint Sauveur, open from Tuesday to Sunday from 6:00 pm to 2:00 am.
Bistro des Augustins
A small waterfront wine bar near Notre Dame de Paris. Specialization - potato gratin casseroles.
Address: 39 Quai Grands Augustins, open from 10 am to 2 am.
Le baron rouge
An authentic wine bar with a local flavor near the Bastille - a godsend for wine lovers! A glass costs 1.5-3.8 €. Large selection of snacks and excellent oysters in season. Wine can be taken with you, poured into any container from barrels - 4.5-8.5 €.
Address: Theophile Roussel, 1, open on weekdays from 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm, Saturday from 10:00 am to 10:00 pm, Sunday from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.
