Paris: Cheapest 2-star/3-star Michelin experience? (Dinner )

[valchow]

Hi everyone,

I will be traveling to Paris (first time in France), and am interested in eating out (dinner only, due to schedule)at a 2-star or 3-star Michelin restaurants. From reading online, I was astonished by how expensive the dinner would be. Wow.

I would like to ask if anyone know which one is the cheapest 2-star or 3-star Michelin restaurant in Paris. What I am looking for specifically is value.
I am looking for dinner tasting menu / set menu.

The list of 3-star and downgraded to 2-star Michelin Restaurants in Paris :

France Paris Arpege Review *** *** *** *** *** *** *** -
France Paris Astrance Review * * ** ** *** *** *** -
France Paris Bristol Review - - - - - ** *** -
France Paris Grand Vefour Review *** *** *** *** *** ** ** -
France Paris Guy Savoy Review *** *** *** *** *** *** *** -
France Paris l'Ambroisie Review *** *** *** *** *** *** *** -
France Paris Le Cinq Review *** *** *** *** ** ** ** -
France Paris Ledoyen Review *** *** *** *** *** *** *** -
France Paris Lucas Carton (Senderens) Review *** *** *** ** ** ** ** -
France Paris Meurice Review * *** ** ** *** *** *** -
France Paris Pierre Gagnaire Review *** *** *** *** *** *** *** -
France Paris Plaza Athenee (Ducasse) Review *** *** *** *** *** *** *** -
France Paris Pre Catelan Review ** *** ** ** *** *** *** -
France Paris Taillevent Review *** *** *** *** ** ** ** -

Taken from:
http://www.3starrestaurants.com/miche...

[souphie]

If you're lookinf for value (which I am), you need to go for lunch. The good ones are Le Cinq, Ledoyen, Rostang, Arpège, Gagnaire.

In your list, if you want to go ALC (or tasting menu) for dinner, I'd say that Taillevent is the best value -- always was.

Worse value would have to be l'Ambroisie, that has no prix fixe. And no tasting. But Gagnaire, l'Arpège, Meurice, Bristol, Savoy are in the top price range.

La Grande Cascade only has one star but many think (including me) it's worth two.

By the way, the response to your question lies in www.viamichelin.com . Check out the actual prices of each of these restaurants and you'll have your response.

But this is not the right approach. Top restaurants are as different from one another as it gets. Comparing their prices make little sense -- there's no such thing as a typical **/*** experience. You need to search the blogs and websites about those restaurants and make up your own mind as to which ones are most attractive to you, depending on your tastes and expectations.

[Parigi]

Soup is right, as usual, to point out that looking for a good-value starred restaurant makes more sense that looking for a cheap starred resto.
And Maximilien also makes a very good point. All thes starred places are not going to be cheap. It will be a matter of difference between very expensive and very very very expensive. Why not just embrace the experience and put the 7.453%, or whatever, difference in price out of one's mind.

[Oakglen]

Another issue is the wine markups; some use markups of 4X & 5X (Arpege), while others are more reasonable (Taillevent and La Grande Cascade).

[Maximilien]

It's hard to add to what souphie wrote!

From my limited experience with 1/2/3 stars restaurants, is that even if it's expensive you usually get what you pay for, in quality (food and service) and in quantitiy (both are debatable, see tons of reviews for each restaurants).

One thing to look for is the ambience of the restaurant; some of them are very classically luxurious, while others are more modern (without going over-board) and that could make a big difference in the final appreciation; I think there is a big difference between hotel restaurants (Le Cinq, Bristol, ...) and other "stand-alone" restaurants.

(this is highly personal) One other thing is that by going to a restaurant like that, at least for dinner, is that you HAVE to forget about the prices, you have to be prepared that it will cost a lot of money and if you start looking at the menu and picking what is the cheapest food (money-wise) you will not enjoy yourself.

If you feel that it's a lot of money and are a bit "afraid" I suggest not going at one of those restaurants and do two or three 1-star restaurants instead or even high quality non-starred restaurants.

[beaulieu]

I agree completely with the last two (personal) paragraphs.

[danna]

If it were I, I would generally steer away from the "downgraded to 2" places. It seems to me these places may be getting a bit tired and stale, and possibly resting on their past successes. (obviously a generalization, some chefs may prefer to go more casual these days.) I personnally would rather go to an up-and-coming 1 or 2 star.

Of course, I'm just an infrequent visitor, so I'm curious if that opinion, based mainly on my experiences in the US, seems logical to the Parisians helping you out here.

When in France last year, I had dinner at the 2 star Nicolas LeBec in Lyon and dinner at the no-star (although owned by a former star holder) Fable de Fontaine (sp?). I had a much more memorable and pleasurable dinner at the latter. The haute cuisine at LeBec, while impeccable, didn't seem to have as much energy and sense of place as FdF. I could have been in New York , you know?

[Parigi]

"I could have been in New York , you know?"

Is that good or bad?

[danna]

well...good if I were in NY, but in Lyon, not so good. I just mean that it seems at a certain level, haute cuisine starts to loose it's sense of place. Sorry, I can't think of a better way to describe it. Maybe I'm just tired of tasting menus and formal dining. I'm not saying LeBec was stuffy, or criticizing it in any way...I'm just saying if the OP has eaten in top tier places in the states, it might be more fun to enjoy slightly more casual settings in Paris.

One other thought for the OP...one thing I noticed , the stated prices on the menus you're considering likely include tax and tip. Now if you back off the tax you would normally pay at home and a 20% tip, the prices might be a bit closer to what you are accustomed to paying.

[f2dat06]

you missed the cheapest 2 star dinner in Paris, at Relais Louis 13, 80e, but limited choices for this menu. I have not been since 2004 so have no idea how it is now.

http://www.relaislouis13.com/menus.html

[rswatkins]

If you're looking for a good price:value ratio, it's hard to beat Gerard Besson: one star restaurant where the technically superb, if slightly old-fashioned, cooking is always at a two star+ level.

Robert

[souphie]

I love Besson and think it's a pretty unique place, but I'm not sure I would call it good value, except for the lunch deal.

[rswatkins]

Yes, not cheap, but a la carte (if you decide not to truffle) will definitely be less than all 3 stars and many 2 stars, for comparable or better food.

[souphie]

Yes, but why skip the truffle when Besson is arguably one of the best in town for it?

[Extraneus]

Just checked out his lobster: 75 euro!?! I had a simply fantastic lobster in Pordenone, Italy, last weekend at a measly 13 euro, and it's simply not physically possible to make a better tasting lobster than that one...!!! I realize this is Paris and not a country town like Pordenone, but I simply cannot see why I should pay this amount of money for food that is available for much less...?

[Parigi]

"I simply cannot see why I should pay this amount of money for food that is available for much less...?"

So glad you could beam your Pordenone lobster, which according to you personally is unbeatable, to the capital of another country with a different economy, different ingredient cost, different rent.
Btw, the Cuba tent in the annual Fête de l'Huma used to serve - or maybe still serves - a 10 Frf lobster, a price which it maintained forever. Tried it once for its novelty value. Am happy to report that it was not a ripoff at all. It truly was worth 10 Frf.

[ChefJune]

< I simply cannot see why I should pay this amount of money for food that is available for much less...?>

In that case, you certainly shouldn't! Just go back to Pordenone instead of Paris. That's rather like comparing apples to oranges.

You will also get a less expensive 3-star dinner if you travel outside of Paris to, say, Joigny or Saulieu or Roanne. Rent/property costs a lot more in Paris than it does in the provinces, hence the higher prices.