BudgetTravel

The concept of brunch has taken off here only in recent years. The first to get it right was Le Pain Quotidien . At wooden communal tables, barely awake Parisians are served café au lait, soft-boiled eggs, cheese, and charcuterie (from $25.50). Large trays carry the signature chocolate and praline spreads, to be sampled on artisanal bread. More upscale, A Priori Thé is nested in the Galerie Vivienne, one of the 19th-century shopping passages that drill through whole blocks. This salon de thé, or tea salon, serves a weekend brunch of warm sandwiches, egg dishes, and fruit tarts (from $30). Sit at the indoor terrace and bask in the sunlight shining through the glass arcade.

Although frequented mostly during the day, R'Aliment is where I go for dinner with the girls. The menu leans toward organic products and always offers at least one vegetarian option. I recently delighted in a beet and lime soup ($8) followed by a mushroom and chestnut tart ($15.75).

Clotilde Dusoulier, getting her weekly dose of her organic herbs at Marche des Batignolles (Marie Hennechart)

La Cave de l'Os à Moëlle started out as an annex to L'Os à Moëlle, across the street, but the wine bar has surpassed the restaurant in popularity. Pick a bottle from the wall compartments and sit with other diners to share a family-style meal of delicious country food. It's as close to an all-you-can-eat buffet as Parisian style will allow and one of the best deals around ($26.25).

If you haven't yet explored the Butte-aux-Cailles and its quiet hilltop streets, Café Fusion is the perfect excuse. The bright, modern bistro serves French classics side by side with Asian or Mediterranean dishes--and the beef tartare ($15.75) cohabits beautifully with the salmon grilled in a banana leaf ($14.50). It also boasts an exquisite terrace for warm summer nights.

Almost a century after Henri Androuët opened his first cheese shop, his name is emblazoned on some 10 fromageries and, more recently, two casual restaurants named Androuët Sur le Pouce (eating on the run--literally, on the thumb). In addition to marvelous tartines (from $13.75), these cheese bars serve tasting platters (also from $13.75). At dinner, it's quieter, and the knowledgeable staff is more available.

Bistros and gastronomy have been a happy couple for more than a decade, and a new adjective--bistronomique--has been coined for restaurants offering expert dishes in a casual atmosphere at a reasonable price. Among the newer ones, perhaps the most interesting is L'Ourcine, joining L'Avant-Goût in the oft-neglected 13th arrondissement. Other favorites are Bistro Vivienne and the bustling Velly.

If you're willing to climb a notch on the gastronomical (and price) scale, I recommend the authentic Aux Lyonnais, for its brilliant take on Lyon specialties, and Chez Jean, for the creative simplicity of its dishes and its warm ambience.

Superstar dining isn't out of reach! Most high-class restaurants have special lunch menus: same sophisticated food, same fabulous service, in a less intimidating atmosphere and at a gentler price. Lunch at Les Ambassadeurs will cost you $92, plus wine, but it's an experience you will never forget. 10 place de la Concorde, 8th arr., 011-33/1-44-71-16-16.