The best affordable restaurants in Paris cook one thing well for a neighbourhood crowd. Our list has bouillons serving French classics, bistros that have kept their regulars for years, Vietnamese, Cambodian and Sichuan canteens, a Montparnasse crêperie, a Turkish döner counter and two vegetarian kitchens. They run from Pigalle down to the 15th. At every one the bill stays sensible, and people come back for the food.
The short list
11 places, in the order they appear below.
- 1Bouillon PigalleFrench classics on a big terracePigalle (18th)
- 2Bouillon JulienBrasserie food in a 1906 Art Nouveau roomFaubourg Saint-Denis (10th)
- 3Le PantrucheSeasonal bistro cooking and a souffléSouth Pigalle (9th)
- 4Le Beurre NoisetteClassic French with regulars15th arrondissement
- 5Le Petit CambodgeBò bún, fastCanal Saint-Martin
- 6Chi's VietfoodA Vietnamese lunchButtes-Chaumont
- 7Trois Fois Plus de PimentSichuan noodles with real heatBeaubourg
- 8La Crêperie de JosselinBreton galettes and ciderMontparnasse
- 9ÖzlemDöner in homemade breadPoissonnière (10th)
- 10Le Grenier de Notre-DameOrganic vegetarian platesLatin Quarter
- 11Jah JahPlant-based Afro-Caribbean bowlsPetites Écuries (10th)
Where can you eat classic French food cheaply in Paris?
Start with the bouillons. They serve classic French cooking at low prices: bone marrow, bourguignon and sole meunière without a fine-dining bill. Bouillon Pigalle brought the formula back for today’s Paris. Bouillon Julien cooks honest brasserie food priced for its quartier, in a dining room classified as a historic monument.
The Moussié family opened Bouillon Pigalle in 2017. Its heated terrace holds a hundred people. Order the bone marrow, then the boeuf bourguignon, with a carafe of the house Bordeaux.
Bouillon Pigalle
Hours: Mon–Sun 12:00–00:00
Address: 22 Bd de Clichy, 75018 Paris, France
At Bouillon Julien the room comes first: carved wood panels, stained glass and mirrored ceilings, all from 1906. It is worth the trip on its own. From the kitchen, the sole meunière and the tarte tatin are the dishes to order.
Bouillon Julien
Hours: Mon–Sun 11:45–00:00
Address: 16 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Denis, 75010 Paris, France
Which Paris bistros offer good value?
For a proper sit-down meal where the bill does not climb, go to a neighbourhood bistro that lives on locals rather than passing trade. Le Pantruche in South Pigalle has filled its tables since 2011 with precise, seasonal French cooking. Le Beurre Noisette, in the residential 15th, serves careful classical food at fair prices for what arrives on the plate.
Le Pantruche keeps a low profile. Its Grand Marnier soufflé is a dish from another era, and it takes twenty minutes, so ask for it when you order your starters or you will leave without it.
Le Pantruche
Hours: Mon–Fri 12:30–14:00, 19:30–21:30 · Sat–Sun closed
Address: 3 Rue Victor Massé, 75009 Paris, France
Le Beurre Noisette has the settled feel of a room whose regulars have been coming for years. If tête de veau is on the menu, have it. Few Paris kitchens still make it well, and this one does.
Le Beurre Noisette
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Fri 12:00–13:45, 19:00–21:45 · Sat 19:00–21:45 · Sun closed
Address: 68 Rue Vasco de Gama, 75015 Paris, France
Where is the best cheap Asian food in Paris?
Le Petit Cambodge, near the Canal Saint-Martin, serves Cambodian bowls at speed. Below the Buttes-Chaumont, Chi’s Vietfood cooks home-style Vietnamese. And a few blocks from the Centre Pompidou there is a queue on the pavement for Trois Fois Plus de Piment, where the Sichuan noodles are made by hand and dressed in chili oil.
The bò bún is why people cross Paris for Le Petit Cambodge: beef, herbs, pickled carrot and crushed peanuts, with crisp spring rolls added if you want them. Write your order on a slip and pay at the counter. There are no bookings, so expect a line at peak hours.
Le Petit Cambodge
Hours: Mon–Sun 12:00–23:00
Address: 20 Rue Alibert, 75010 Paris
Chi’s Vietfood keeps its menu short: bún, fragrant broths and banh mi. It works for a solo lunch or a slow dinner. Hiong cooks in the open kitchen, and the space seats barely more than a dozen.
Chi's Vietfood
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Fri 12:00–15:00, 19:00–22:00 · Sat 12:00–16:30, 19:00–22:00 · Sun closed
Address: 13 Rue Pradier, 75019 Paris, France
At Trois Fois Plus de Piment you choose your spice level. Even the middle of the scale is serious, so start low. Dumplings come on the side. The room is tiny and cramped, and off-peak hours are the easy way in.
Trois Fois Plus de Piment
Hours: Mon closed · Tue–Sun 12:00–23:00
Address: 184 Rue Saint-Martin, 75003 Paris, France
Where can you get a cheap lunch in Paris?
Some of the best value in Paris comes on a paper tablecloth or folded into homemade bread. Rue du Montparnasse has been the city’s Breton street since the 1920s, and La Crêperie de Josselin still makes its galettes the way it always has. In the 10th, Özlem has turned its döner spit since 1987, with house-made ayran and a queue at lunchtime.
At Josselin the room smells of buckwheat butter. The maraîchère comes with spinach and bacon; the Josselin galette adds ham, egg, cheese and mushrooms. Drink the cider from a bowl, as is the custom on this street.
La Crêperie de Josselin
Hours: Mon closed · Tue 17:30–23:00 · Wed–Sat 11:30–23:00 · Sun 11:30–22:30
Address: 67 Rue du Montparnasse, 75014 Paris, France
Özlem marinates its meat for hours before stacking and roasting it, then shaves it into homemade bread with red onion, flat-leaf parsley and sumac. If you are hungry, add a lahmacun.
Özlem
Hours: Mon–Sat 11:30–16:30 · Sun closed
Address: 57 R. des Petites Écuries, 75010 Paris, France
Where can vegetarians eat well on a budget in Paris?
Two kitchens do meat-free cooking well without costing a fortune. Le Grenier de Notre-Dame has served organic vegetarian food in the Latin Quarter since 1978, two blocks from Notre-Dame, and has worked with the same small producers for nearly fifty years. Jah Jah, in the 10th, cooks fully plant-based Afro-Caribbean food inspired by the Rastafari tradition. It is heavy on spice, and the crowd is young and relaxed.
At Le Grenier de Notre-Dame, the assiette végétarienne composée changes with whatever arrived that morning.
Le Grenier de Notre-Dame
Hours: Mon–Fri 12:00–14:30, 18:30–22:30 · Sat 12:00–22:30 · Sun 12:00–22:00
Address: 18 Rue de la Bûcherie, 75005 Paris, France
Jah Jah started as a bicycle selling vegetarian hot dogs, until Coralie Jouhier and Daqui Gomis gave it a permanent home. The menu runs to bowls, burgers and hot dogs. Order a bowl to taste what the kitchen does with spice.
Jah Jah
Hours: Mon 12:00–14:30 · Tue–Sat 12:00–14:30, 19:00–22:00 · Sun closed
Address: 11 R. des Petites Écuries, 75010 Paris, France
