Make Lunch Your Main Meal Out
The single most effective way to eat well for less in France is to eat your restaurant meal at lunchtime. On weekdays, a large share of bistros, brasseries and neighbourhood restaurants offer a fixed-price lunch called a "formule" or "menu du midi": typically a starter and main, or a main and dessert, sometimes all three, for noticeably less than the same dishes cost at dinner. Look for a chalkboard outside listing the "plat du jour" (dish of the day), which is usually the cheapest hot meal on the menu and often the freshest.
Lunch service is normally from about noon to 2pm, and in smaller towns kitchens can close promptly. Arrive by 12:30 if you want the full choice. Weekend lunches and Sunday menus are often priced higher or not offered at all, so the savings work best Monday to Friday.
Know What Is Included
A few habits keep the bill down:
- Tap water is free. Ask for "une carafe d'eau" and you get a jug of tap water at no charge. Bottled water is a paid extra, and staff may offer it first.
- Service is included. French menu prices include service by law, so there is no added percentage. Leaving small change for good service is optional.
- House wine by the pitcher. Many restaurants sell "vin en pichet" or "vin de la maison" in 25cl or 50cl pitchers, which usually costs much less than a bottle.
- Coffee at the counter. In many cafés a coffee drunk standing at the bar ("au comptoir") is cheaper than the same coffee served at a table or on the terrace. Prices for both are often displayed.
Bakeries Are Your Best Friend
Boulangeries are the backbone of a budget food plan. Beyond baguettes and croissants, most sell sandwiches made that morning (a "jambon-beurre" of ham and butter on baguette is the classic), quiches, savoury tarts and small pizzas. Many offer a lunch deal combining a sandwich, drink and pastry. For breakfast, a croissant or pain au chocolat from a bakery costs a fraction of a hotel breakfast and is often better.
Bakeries are usually closed one day a week, which is posted on the door, and the best bread sells out by late afternoon.
Markets and Supermarkets
Almost every French town has an open-air or covered market on set days of the week, and big cities have several. They are good for fruit, cheese, charcuterie, bread and ready-to-eat dishes such as roast chicken, paella or socca in the south. Prices are not always lower than supermarkets, but quality is high and you can buy small quantities. Go mid-morning for choice; markets usually pack up around lunchtime. In Paris, the Marché d'Aligre in the 12th arrondissement and the covered Marché des Enfants Rouges in the Marais are both long established, and the city's website lists every street market with its days.
For the cheapest staples, use supermarkets. City-centre formats such as Monoprix, Franprix, Carrefour City and Intermarché Express sell salads, sandwiches, yoghurts, cheese and wine, and larger out-of-town hypermarkets are cheaper still if you have a car.
The French Picnic
Picnicking is a normal part of French life, and parks, riverbanks and town squares fill up at lunchtime in good weather. A baguette, a piece of cheese, some fruit and a tomato make a meal for very little. Bring a small knife (in checked luggage if you are flying) and a bag for your rubbish. In Paris, the banks of the Seine, the Canal Saint-Martin and many parks are popular picnic spots; check signs, because some lawns are off-limits seasonally and some parks restrict alcohol.
Where Not to Eat
The highest prices and weakest value cluster directly around the biggest sights. Walking ten minutes away from the Eiffel Tower, Notre-Dame or the main square of a tourist town usually brings prices down and quality up. Menus translated into several languages with photos are often a warning sign. Places full of local office workers at 12:30 on a weekday are a good sign.
Other Ways to Save
- Crêperies serve savoury galettes and sweet crêpes, which make a filling, inexpensive meal, especially in Brittany and Normandy.
- University and workplace canteens are not generally open to tourists, so don't count on them.
- Self-catering in an apartment with a kitchen pays off quickly on longer stays, especially for breakfasts and dinners.
- Apéritif instead of dinner. Some bars serve generous snacks with drinks in the early evening, and a planche of cheese and charcuterie shared between two can replace a full dinner.
- Eat dinner at home or picnic, lunch out. Reversing the usual pattern is the easiest way to taste French cooking without paying dinner prices.
