Le Cinq Mars in Paris's 7e plates a €24 weekday lunch set: endive salad with Roquefort, plat du jour, dessert. The same kitchen runs the €60 dinner carte.
Tip: Lunch is open to walk-ins; arrive at 12:30 to skip the gallery crowd that fills by 13:00.
Address: 51 Rue de Verneuil, 75007 Paris
Le Bistrot Paris in the 7e plates a €24 lunch set Mon-Fri: steak tartare, plat du jour, profiteroles. A glass of house red and a coffee are folded into the price.
Try: Lunch set
Tip: The lunch menu at €24 is the city's most under-rated set; book a window seat by phone.
Breizh Café on Rue du Cherche-Midi in Paris plates buckwheat galettes from €8. The galette complète with Bordier butter is €13; the dessert crêpe is €8.
Try: Galette
Tip: The Bordier butter caramel crêpe is the dessert; the galette complète is the lunch.
Le Baron Rouge in Paris's 12e shucks oysters on the pavement Saturdays for €2 each. Glasses of cru Beaujolais run €4; the cheapest serious oyster set in town.
Try: Oyster and wine pairing
Tip: Saturday 10:00-13:00 is the move: oysters on the street, cru Beaujolais from the barrel.
Bouillon Chartier in Paris is the 1896 workers' brasserie still plating œuf mayonnaise at €3 and a full bistro 3-course set under €18, no reservation, no shortcut.
Try: Three-course bistro classics
Tip: Queue moves fast. Arrive at 11:30 lunch or 18:30 dinner for the first wave of seating.
Bouillon Pigalle in Paris reopened the bouillon model in 2017 and now seats 300 daily with no booking. Mains under €12, a starter at €3, île flottante at €3.50.
Try: Bouillon mains under €12
Tip: Queue from 19:00; tables turn every 45 minutes. The Lyonnais sister Bouillon République is the alternative.
L'As du Fallafel in Paris is the falafel-pita window on Rue des Rosiers since 1979, a €9 sandwich the line moves through in 15 minutes most lunch services.
Try: Falafel pita
Tip: Closed Saturdays for Shabbat. Take the sandwich to Place des Vosges for a bench seat.
