You can get a pretty good
lunch if you know where to go for €12 to €25 or dinner for
€15 to €35. You can eat very well at these prices and, for
us, spending more is a waste, just as spending much less is risky. If a
restaurant is reasonably priced and full of diners, it is probably
pretty good.
If you are hungry for fresh vegetables, order
salads, which are often very large and contain a wide variety of
elements. If a salad (or anything else) bears a familiar name, such as
Caesar, don’t expect it to be anything like you would have in the
U.S.
Generally, lunch is a better bargain than dinner.
And the special of the day — “le menu,” “la
formule” or “le repas à prix fixe” — is
the easiest and cheapest meal. You often have quite a few choices (not
that this will simplify matters) on “le menu,” plus a
special of the day. Many restaurants have several different prices of
“menu” or “formule” and often the cheapest is
not available in the evening or on weekends. (If it says something
about “midi,” it probably means only at noon.) Some
restaurants serve only à la carte in the evening or after a
certain time.
Only fast-food restaurants, some bars, cafés,
bistros, brasseries and some restaurant chains (e.g. Bistro Romain, a
good bet), can be counted on to serve any food at all between standard
mealtimes. Getting anything to eat before noon or between 2:30 and 7 or
8 p.m. is not possible in most typical French restaurants.
By law, the menu (“la carte”) must be
posted outside all restaurants. By law, also, they must serve you plain
tap water, if you want it, and bread.
If you find you are overeating (likely) you may want
to concentrate on less-expensive two-course lunches.
BEVERAGES: If you’re trying to economize, stay
away from beverages (mineral water, wine and coffee), as these can add
substantially to the bill. Tap water is quite safe and delicious in
Paris. When the waiter asks about “boissons” (beverages,
bwa-SOH[n]), ask for “une carafe d’eau” (een
kah-rahf-DOE) or “un picher d’eau” (aah[n]
pee-shay-DOE), or “eau de robinet” (“faucet
water” owe-duh-roe-bee-NAY)
AVOID CONFUSION... many French words look like English words, but mean
something quite different:
“La
CARTE” is the menu.
“MENU” is not a menu, but usually refers to
something like a special two-or-more-course meal, also known as
“REPAS À PRIX FIXE” (fixed price meal) or
FORMULE— and sometimes there are two or three at different price
levels). If it says “entrée et plat, ou plat et
dessert” it means it’s a two-course meal and you may select
hors d’oeuvre and main course or main course and dessert.
“L’ENTRÉE” is the
first course (not American
“entree”) — what we call the hors
d’oeuvre, starter or appetizer in English. There is sometimes a
wide variety of entrées— salads, pâtés, soup,
shellfish, cold-cuts, salmon, goat cheese with honey, etc., etc.
French “LE PLAT” is American main course
or (sorry) entree ; the word for plate is “assiette.”
French “DESSERT” is actually dessert,
however, and you often may a choice of cheese or dessert on a prix fixe
meal. The cheapest prix fixe may have neither cheese nor dessert, and a
more expansive one (35 € or more) may have both.
French “l’ADDITION”
(lah-dee-SHOW[n]) is the check or bill. The check is generally
presented folded over, and you put your money or credit card on it and
fold it over. Many restaurants take Visa or MasterCard, bringing a
little remote transmitter to the table to process it. You cannot add a
tip. If you pay by credit card, leave your tip, if any, in cash, on the
little tray the bill came on. If this doesn’t work out, give your
tip directly to the waiter; do not leave it loose on the table.
French “le SERVICE” is the amount
included in a meal price for the waiter’s service (tip), but is
rarely shown, as it once was. “Service compris” means it is
included, and it almost always is. “Service non compris,”
means it is not. The actual word for tip is “pourboire.”
Remember, the “service” really is
included in the price, though it is customary, if the service was good,
to leave some change, maybe 5 to 10 percent, often depending on what is
convenient from the change you are brought when you pay. One French
friend says €1 to €3 total, and another says “a little
less than 10 percent. We leave at least €1 per person if the
service is all right. If you want to tell the server to “keep the
change,” just say “Ça va” (sah-VAH) when the
change is brought to you.
“Waiter” is
“SERVEUR” (masculine) or “serveuse” (feminine).
It is no longer politically correct to refer to a waiter) as
“Garçon.” Use “MONSIEUR,”
“MADAME,” “MADEMOISELLE,” etc. A young woman is
either Mademoiselle or Madame. An older one, unless you know otherwise,
is Madame.
Don’t hesitate to ask about something on the
menu. Good waiters expect to be asked, as restaurants often have their
own names for their specialties, and the French also ask for a
description. Of course you may not understand the answer, though many
waiters speak a little English, and can at least say
“feesh,” which can be helpful.
With MEAT, they will ask how you want it:
“QUELLE CUISSON?”
“SAIGNANTE” — literally
“bleeding”
“AU POINT” — is often translated
as medium, but may be more like rare
“BIEN CUITE” — well done, in
theory, but more likely it will be medium.
Seating is often very tight, even in better
restaurants, with much shifting around of tables for people to get in
or out of their seat. You may be seated right next to or across from a
stranger. View this as an opportunity (not guaranteed) to chat.
Most French speak a little English, but won’t admit it, because
they do so poorly and have forgotten a lot. If you are well-mannered,
they might try to converse with you in English. Don’t forget that
“Bonsoir, Monsieur”!
|
|
|
