Dear Google Researcher,
     I will have the good fortune to travel to France on
vacation with my fifteen year old son from August 10 to
August 23. We will spend four nights in Nice and eight
nights in Paris. Although we have been there before, the
circumstances at those times was not conducive to
sightseeing. Now we want to see as much and do as much
as possible. Please prepare for us
(1)Suggestions of things to see and do
(2)Suggestions of which restaurants to patronize for the
twenty four or so lunches and dinners we will have. We
want French cuisine. I am thinking of paying about
$50 per person per meal. This should include one bottle
of wine with each meal. Also I would like to find 
several special restaurants in each place where we
would spend roughly up to double that amount as necessary.
     Thank you for your help.

---

Clarification of Question by raisondetre-ga on 24 Jul 2003 11:09 PDT

I wish to add that I will not have access to a car
during the trip.
I wish to modify one parameter:
     I would like to pay about $50 per person per meal
     at lunch including one bottle of wine
     I would like to pay about $75 per person per meal
     at dinner including one bottle of wine
Thank you for your courtesy and cooperation.

Raisondetre

---

Clarification of Question by raisondetre-ga on 24 Jul 2003 22:45 PDT

Dear Google Researchers,

     If the reason that my question languishes
unanswered is because you deem the offered
compensation inadequate, please inform me of
what you consider fair and I will try to
respond in a positive fashion.
     Thank you again for your courtesy.

Raison

---

Request for Question Clarification by omnivorous-ga on 25 Jul 2003 06:38 PDT

Reason to be --

The Google terms of service don't permit posting in foreign languages
;=)

I suspect that the reason other researchers haven't jumped on this
question is the same reason I stayed away from it -- most of us expect
that you'd want someone with first-hand knowledge of location and
restaurant.

I have 5 guides to France -- including an excellent countrywide guide
called "Hotels & Restos de France" published by Hachette -- but I
couldn't swear that of the 14 restaurants listed in Nice meet your
specifications.

The Google Answers researchers are a very worldly lot but apparently
there are few that feel up to this task.

Best regards,

O.

I won't provide a complete agenda but rather suggest using Le Cordon
Bleu for a one-day course or market tour:
http://cordonbleu.net/International/English/courses/catalogue.cfm

Bon voyage,

Omnivorous-GA

Greetings Omnivorous,
    
     How Appropriate it is that a google researcher named Omnivorous

om·niv·o·rous    ( P )  Pronunciation Key  (m-nvr-s)
adj. 
Eating both animal and vegetable foods. 
Taking in everything available, as with the mind: an omnivorous reader. 

from the Pacific Northwest has such a wonderful idea of what to do in the 
pursuit of food appreciation in the South of France!

I am grateful for your suggestion which I will pursue.

Best wishes,

Raison

Raison d’etre –

I’ve traveled to France quite a bit but don’t know Nice well and my
knowledge of Paris restaurants is out-of-date.  However, I have a
couple of suggestions for resources:

The graffiti message board on the Rick Steves’ website is a very
interesting way
to stay up on the latest of changes.  Also, an amusing way to
experience Paris
is to do his one-block Rue Cler tour.  This Paris street has one of
every kind of shop – plus a couple of cafes and restaurants.  You can
use it to prepare for a picnic, as well as to see how the French use
specialty-stores for food shopping:
http://www.ricksteves.com/
http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/countries/france.htm

Once you’re there, Pariscope and Officiel des Spectacles (both
published on
Wednesday) have a great deal on nightlife and restaurants.  Parisiens
are serious about dining out and will review a restaurant and chef
with the seriousness that Americans talk about baseball players.  The
daily newspaper, Le Figaro, also has a Wednesday special section
(Figaroscope) with happenings in the city.

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA

Omnivorous -

As I begin dinner in a worthy French restaurant, I
will offer a toast to you in absentia for your
thoughtful insights and generosity in providing me
with such useful information.

Regards,

Raison

My friend Omnivorous,

Thank you for your explanation.

It is a tribute to the integrity of google 
researchers that they will not provide an
answer unless it rises to the  highest level
in terms of meeting the needs and desires of the
questioner.

You are absolutely correct that I was asking
for personal injformation, not a rehash of
information easily gleaned from a travel
guide.

In the short period of time that I have been
regularly visiting google answers, I have been
amazed at the skill and breadth of knowledge
of the researchers.I am equally impressed by
the warmth and humanity they display in their
interactions with the questioners.

To post a question here is not to merely
to try to obtain information. It is, at its
best, to participate in an intellectual
collaboration with the researchers and
to set forth on an adventure where the
outcome often exceeds the reasonable 
expectations of the questioner. It is 
also to have a good time while learning.

I like to think of the development of computer
technology with the internet which makes google
answers possible as resulting in the beginning of a
Second Renaissance in the intellectual history
of man, the path of which leads to a future in 
which we will, indeed, reach out to touch the
stars.


I have been trying to think of good questions
I want answered. When I come back from 
France, I will post some that I think
will be challenging and be fun to answer.

Thank you again. 


Reason

Hi, raisond'etre !

The Michelin Red Guide is the probably the most highly regarded guide
produced in France. It can be consulted on-line through:

http://www.viamichelin.com/

But you will need to be a member to access it.

Registration is free. It is very prestigious for a restaurant to be
included in it, so when you see a restaurant advertising its Michelin
stars, you have a very good guide to quality.

Also, if you get the guide to the Logis de France - a group of very
special boutique hotels in the "Quaint plus special service" category,
you will find they often have excellent cuisine.

Lonely Planet Guides 

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/index.cfm

and Frommers

http://www.frommers.com/

are both excellent publications that began focussed on the very
budget-conscious young traveller, but have extended beyond that as
their customers have grown older, acquired children and become more
prosperous.

I usually borrow current editions from my public library when
travelling.

Unfortunately researchers cannot quote from these publications at any
length without running into copyright problems.

Other than that:

Don't eat at the cafe inside the Gare du Lyons unless you want to pay
far too much for the privilege. There's  a good little place outside
and across the square.

My family Tip for "just happening" across a good restaurant in Europe.
Start in the Grand Place(main square) of wherever you happen to be (in
Paris that's any big square or obviously fashionable restaurant area).
Walk away from it one block and turn left. There will be an excellent
little place, possibly with a hand written menu, tucked away just
there at half the price and possibly twice the quality. This works in
Italy, too.

My personal tip: don't ignore supermarkets or small groceries if you
just want a quick lunch - and don't forget the French trick of eating
choclate with bread. One stick French bread, one packet dark
chocolate, local cheese, local cheap wine, fruit = one great lunch.
Don't buy the very low priced supermarket wine with the screw top -
that's for cooking , students and happy tipplers. One price range up
makes a big difference.


Remember claret is a very light wine - it can surprise you if you're
used to the modern full bodied reds. Beaujolais is also light,
burgundy heavier. Lots of good whites but Pouilly Fusee is a favourite
of mine as is its cousin Pouilly Fumee (for its slightly smoky
flavour) - great with fish.

Most restaurants have a house wine ("vin du maison") which is more
than adequate unless you really know your wines.

Half the fun of finding a restaurant is to join the French and walk
along looking at the menus on offer outside the various
establishments. (No prices shown = very expensive.) A good rule of
thumb is if the restaurant is full of locals (not tourists) the
quality is likely to be good. (This is a good tip for picking a
Chinese restaurant anywhere in the world ! )

You are going in August, which means Nice will be very full of high
season holidaying French, and in contrast Paris may seem empty of the
French and quite a few establishments (museums, theatres) may be shut.
August is the traditional French holiday time and everyone goes away
at once.

If they are open, a visit to the Opera or Opera Comique is well worth
the time, just to soak in the atmosphere of these wonderful old
buildings. Tickets for the "amphitheatre" (the topmost circle in "the
gods") used to be sold on the day to queues of students at very cheap
prices - take your binoculars if that's the only way you can get
tickets. Intervals were very long indeed - time for a quick snack in
the cafes outside or more than one drink at the bar. I don't know if
that's changed. For better tickets ask the concierge at your hotel,
who is likely to be able to organise something.

Have a wonderful time.

Hello angy,

You have provided me with an abundance of high
quality information which I shall certainly
exploit.

I am very grateful for your effort.

All the best,

Reason

I don't know if this will help but, I think I can recommend you a
restaurant in Paris wich seems to meet your expectations :
La Coupole    
Address:   102, bd Montparnasse - 75014 Paris 14 
Telephone:  +33 (0)1 43 20 14 20 
Fax:  +33 (0)1 43 35 46 14 

This restaurant always delighted me during each of my Paris visits.
The Red Guide from Michelin describes it as :

Meal prices:   (16,50) - 29 incl. drinks (lunchtime)/30.50 and menu 33
to 60   13,50
Cuisine:  brasserie 
Comments:  The spirit of Montparnasse lives on in this immense Art
Deco brasserie, first opened in 1927. The 32 pillars are decorated by
masterpieces by artists of that period. A lively atmosphere.


Personnal advice : As it is quite crowded you'd better call in advance
to make a reservation. As said by angy-ga, you can trust the Michelin
red guide.

I sure hope you'll enjoy your staying among us !
François