food budget

Elizabeth, Google: Sainsburys Supermarkets, Tesco, Compare Supermarket Prices, etc. and you'll find more about the price of everyday 'stuff' than you ever wanted to know. It'll all be in GBP prices so divide by 2 to arrive at US greenbacks +/-.

In Paris, I would figure 5 Euro for a sandwich, a piece of fruit and a drink from a Monoprix.

Elizabeth, since Americans don't do metric, I will help you out on this, when ordering deli meats/cheeses etc, 100 grams is about enough for either one man sized sandwich or two ladys sandwiches.. .

If you buy produce in a grocery store, expect the prices to be similar to what you pay at home. Prices in Paris will be so much per "kg." Kg is Kilogram and is about 2.2 pounds, so divide that price by 2 in order to figure the price per pound. I buy nuts, cheese, fruit and bakery breads and pastries for my picnics. Some of the packaged cookies (biscuits) are good and easy to keep on hand. Take a bunch of ziplok-type baggies with you to carry food in. If you like Chinese food you are in luck. All around Paris are Chinese delis--the food is cooked but kept in a cold case. It is sold by weight, so you can order and buy just what you want. I always have them microwave my food so I can eat in the deli. Take-out works, too, if you have someplace to heat it.

I've been living in England for the past year and when in London I would plan on paying the same amount as in the U.S. For example, a box of cereal which costs $2 in the U.S. will cost £2 in London. So in other words, everything tends to be twice as expensive. In order of cheapest to most expensive, the supermarkets are Tesco, Somerfields, Sainsbury's, Waitrose, Marks & Spencer. However, Marks & Spencer food is really good and worth the money when considering it's still much cheaper than eating in a restaurant!

I loved M&S trifle! We tried it last trip and couldn't stop buying one every day. It's down as one of son's favourite "food" item in his memory bank.

We shopped at Sainsbury and yes, prices are double what we pay here, but sometimes the quality over there is way superior to ours.

And don't forget, if you come across a French only speaking vendor at the market, and you don't understand him or her...You could always resort to hand gestures as measurements. Use your fingers to show how thick or thin you want your piece of meat or whatever. That saved my neck in a country or two! I felt a little bit foolish but it got the point across!

Don't forget to seek out Farmer's type markets if you can. Fruit or veg in season can be a bargain. I remember a lady in Dublin at the market who sells Pears from a baby trolley for dirt cheap! Sometimes markets will sell so many for a Euro Vs selling by weight. That makes it a little easier.