You heard about the french chefs right? It’s no wonder they’re so well known, the french cuisine can be fantastic. But, if you want to taste the best that Paris has to offer in food, it can get a bit expensive. A dinner in a good restaurant can easily set you back 50-100 euros per person, but there are plenty of cheaper ways to experience the best that Paris has to offer in the culinary department.

So, option one is the fancy restaurant, an example of that being the Jules Verne restaurant at the second floor of the Eiffel Tower. In this case, the romantic part is great, you can see the light of the city at night, if you have a table near a window. The food, I hear isn’t that great at Jules Verne. There are a lot of other options when it comes to an expensive dinner, and in each case you can’t go in casual clothes, you need to be well dressed.

The second option is the bistro, the classic Parisian place to eat, cheaper and the one I prefer. If you go with the fixed menu, you can spend as little as 15-20 euros on a two-three course meal, with or without wine included. A great breakfast in a bistro is usually 8-10 euros, which usually includes a baguette with butter and jam, excellent croissants, orange juice and coffee. For 10-12 euros you can get an english breakfast, that includes bacon and eggs.

The third option is the picnic. You’ll see parisians eating at lunch near the Seine river, on Champ du Mars, near the Eiffel Tower or on benches. All you need is a fresh baguette, a bottle of wine and some cheese and you’re set.

What You Shouldn’t Miss in Paris

Creppes from a street stand. Delicious pancakes with all kinds of fillings, both sweet and salty. They make a great quick meal for a tourist. Get it, sit down on a bench and enjoy.

Escargot (snails). You can get them from some bistros or at fancy restaurants. I for one paid 7 euros for 6 snails. They weren’t great, but they weren’t bad either. Not sorry I tried them. It’s a french delicacy, and one of the pleasures of travel is to try new things.

French Croissants – freshly baked, at breakfast, with coffee or orange juice, I could actually feel it melt in my mouth. Hands down, the best croissants I’ve ever eaten.