Paris Eats

By Anna Brooke

Paris has more chic boutiques, gorgeous cafés and luxurious avenues crammed into one district than most cities have in their entire square mileage. Yet behind the sparkle lies another city -- the real city -- a bargain hunter's paradise, where everything from dirt cheap food to open-air movie festivals to free nocturnal bike tours are available for urban explorers in the know. What follows are our favorites.

Best Free Couscous: Whoever said there was no such thing as a free dinner had never been to La Choppe (40 rue de Clignancourt; 18th; M° Château Rouge; tel. 01 46 06 20 10) on Friday and Saturday nights, when Samir, the honorable owner, serves lashings of flavorsome Moroccan couscous to anyone who's bought a drink (from 8:30pm onwards).

Best Investment of under €5.50 (Falafel): For a scrumptious snack on the go (and garlicky sauce dripping down your chin) the Marais's Jewish take-outs can't be beat. L'As du Fallafel (34 rue des Rosiers; 4th; M° St-Paul; tel. 01 48 87 63 60) is still the best of the bunch, with sizzling shawarmas and lip-smacking falafels wrapped in doughy bread, salad, fried eggplant, humus and chili sauce.

Best Luxury Patisserie at €2.70 (Pain au Chocolat): Sweet, soft pistachio paste marbled with rich chocolate, enveloped in fluffy, sugary pastry: as far as luxury pastries go, the pains au chocolat à la pistache at La Durée's take-out counter (75, ave des Champs Elysées; 8th; M° George V; tel. 01 40 75 08 75; www.laduree.fr) are not only superlatively delicious, they're affordable.

Best Wine Bar Investment of €15 (cheese and cold-meats): Anne and Sébastien's Rouge Passion (14 rue Jean Baptiste Pigalle; 9th; M° Pigalle; tel. 01 42 85 07 62; www.rouge-passion.fr) is a hip, romantic joint where lovers and wine-lovers alike share giant cheese and cold meat platters (€15) over a glass of Bacchus's finest from the downstairs cellar (from €4). Lunch is also a steal at €15 for two consistently excellent courses of French cuisine.

Best Dirt Cheap Sit-Down Meal with Atmosphere: The swarm of hopefuls hankering for table at Chez Prosper (7 ave du Trône; 11th; M° Nation; tel. 01 43 73 08 51) is a sign not to be ignored. This traditional bistro with tables packed in like sardines not only makes for a buzzing atmosphere, the service is quick, the food -- think steak n' fries (€13) and humongous salads (€12) -- excellent and the bill never, ever unpleasant.