Tour Eiffel 58

Holly
Did you want to go to bypass the long line? or go for the food?? If its for the food and view, I'm sure that it can't be worse than A-95. As you said (and I agree) A-95 was decent but not "Wow".

If you're going to get "wow" I'd pick a non touristy place to eat. Otherwise, you pretty much know the food is for us tourist, and you're paying for the line cutting and the view.

We'll be eating in many other places with better food (this is my 5th trip to Paris so I already have some favorites and hope to discover more), but as I said, the wonderful view over the Seine and line skipping were definitely worth the price of a "decent" lunch.

As a veteran travler like you, I'd say splurge and book a table. Skipping the line is always "priceless"

Yes, we had lunch there 5/12/09 and what a disappointment. We have eaten in Altitude 95 on 3 previous occasions and the food was good, not great, but at least it was a nice environment. The new restaurant is a cross between a McDonald's and a buffet with food that is only passable.

After you are seated and read the directions on how to place your order you walk to a counter, where all the appetizers are on display in plastic dishes, select your appetizer and order your meal. The servers behind the counter are all wearing baseball caps just like McDonald's.

You return to your table and your order is delivered to you in a basket . . . all of it in hard plastic containers, like at a fast food restaurant. You also get a roll in a paper bag. Total cost for 4 appetizers, 2 hamburgers, 2 plates of pasta and 2 glasses of house wine -- 118 Euros.

We even complained and were told that everyone else seems to love it because "you're able to get in and out fast." We doubted that and our experience was not actually that fast. I would not recommend it unless the sole reason you are going is to skip the line. That is really the ONLY benefit.

Same as Rich, Tour Eiffel 58 has been reported to be (I haven't been there) a vastlydifferent experience than Altitude 95, essentially fast food at Michelin star restaurant prices--the opposite of what you'd expect from a Paris eatery--suggest you read carefully the above post from Rich, which is consistent with what I've read. I suggest you not go there, unless you have realistic expectations, know what it is, and are looking for that in Paris. I wouldn't.

Last September we had lunch at Altitude 95 with another couple, which was worth it for the short line and great views. However, the wine steward was extremely pushy, even though we hadn't planned to have wine with lunch. He kept insisting that we have champagne, as it was "only 15 Euro per glass". After enough pushing on his part, we finally relented and said, ok, why not. When he brought the bottle to the table, my husband asked, just to be clear, exactly how much the bottle was. He kept saying 15 Euros per glass, until we pressed on, asking about the BOTTLE price. Finally he admitted it was actually 120 Euro. The logic was that if we filled our 4 small glasses twice, it would come to that. We declined the champagne. Other than that, the food was good, not great, and again, it's the Eiffel Tower...what a place to relax and enjoy Paris for a long lunch.

Thanks for all the comments, especially Rick's. I'm really disappointed - baseball caps and plastic dishes - non! So now on to find another good resto with a view. I understand there's one in the Trocadero that overlooks the ET, Cafe de L'Homme but that it's very expensive. Any other suggestions?

Holly: Yes, here's another suggestion. Here's what many French people do to select restaurants with good food on the plate: they consult Michelin's Red Guide. Few Americans seem to know that the Michelin Guide, which has been rating Paris restaurants for a hundred years and is considered authoritative over there, is now available online. North American Travelers to Paris who don't do some effective research on picking restaurants often end up paying a lot for mediocre food. If you're going to pay Paris restaurant prices, you might as well get good food. Here's how to do that:Go to www.viamichelin.comclick the tab at the top that includes restaurantsat the left click Restaurantsinput Paris 7500x, with x being the number of the arr. you're interested in searching for restaurantscheck Red Guide selectionscheck Bib Gourmands category if you want good food on the plate (the phrase used by Michelin to describe what they look for) at moderate prices.If you don't need moderate prices, check one of the other boxes