Top of the girls’ list of things to see and do in Paris were the Eiffel Tower and having a meal in a nice restaurant.  Although I thought that the lunch at Le Flore En L’Ile was a great start it actually turned out to be our best meal in Paris.  Not only that, it had a view of Notre Dame and a great range of Berthillon ice cream.

Our waitress, although rushed off her feet, was smiley and complimentary (often a rarity in Paris!)  Although initially I thought this cafe was a little expensive €5.50 for a coke, €10 for an omelette, €15 for an omelette with salad and chips, we were hungry and we wanted ice cream!  As we visited more and more cafes around Paris I realised what great value this cafe actually was.

My ham and cheese omelette was good, even for Paris and the girls were very happy with their omelettes, eggs and bacon.  Although the waitress forgot my iced coffee I was willing to forgive her because when she brought my after dinner coffee she dropped one of my chocolate truffles (and brought me another plate with four more!) 

The cafe does a roaring trade in ice cream to take away, but if you want to sit and eat you have to order a minimum of 2 scoops - we ordered 3 to share - chocolate, raspberry and caramel.  The raspberry was without doubt the stand out, the chocolate was fab, but the caramel was too sweet even for us.

It was the best meal we had in Paris and I would highly recommend it, not least because it also offers a view of Notre Dame and the bridge which is hard to beat.

Eating in cafes with kids - If you’re eating out with kids Paris can be fantastic because for most cafes (and most cafes do great food) staples like sandwiches, omelettes and crepes are on the menu.  My nieces loved the idea of having savoury pancakes, although the creperie we visited had such a large menu they were a bit daunted and ended up going for ham and cheese.  Strangely enough they weren’t daunted by the sweet menu!

Also frites (chips) are served nearly everywhere.

Good value meals - If you are looking for good value meals I highly recommend the St Michel area, which is the old student quarter, where there are lots of creperies, kebab shops (don’t knock it till you’ve tried it), fondue restaurants and general cheap eats. 

Picnics - Also a great option if the weather is reasonable is to hit the little food shops, or a Monoprix supermarket, or even better a market and let the kids choose their bread, cheese, meat and fruit, then head to one of the parks for a picnic.  There are also lots of food options in the parks such as the Tuileries and Jardin du Luxembourg so it is a great place to eat al fresco.

Oh and if you do hit the supermarkets try and pick up a box of “biscuits à la cuillère” they look like sponge fingers but they are the lightest, fluffiest biscuits ever - my favourites!

Traditional Parisian eating - If you’re brave enough to try a traditional restaurant experience with the kids, try Bouillon Chartier, one of my favourites - very old school, very Parisian, and good value too.

Berthillon Ice Cream - Parisian ice cream is good, and this is the crème de la ice cream.  I highly recommend the raspberry sorbet (I would have loved to have tried the pear but it was all gone so let me know what it’s like!)  Easiest to find on the Ile St-Louis, but also popular elsewhere.

Fauchon macaroons - A few years ago everyone thought that macaroons were those coconut things, but since I discovered Fauchon macaroons and started spreading the word they’ve caught on ;) The most famous place is LaDuree, also next to the Madeleine but the queue to buy macaroons on the day we visited was ridiculous, and personally I prefer Fauchon.  In hindsight it was possibly a mistake to make this a lunch stop too - their sandwiches are not cheap - the cheapest is around €8-9 although they are good, but it was worth it to be able to move straight on to the macaroons.  Their small macaroons are €1.60 and have about 10 flavours (they also have a vast range of other sweets) and you can also buy them gift boxed (although they are cheaper individually as my niece pointed out), and I always think they are best eaten on the day - if not the minute - you buy them.  The other side of the shop has all kinds of savoury delights, chocolate bars, and then across the road is another part of the shop where you can buy more gifts or even head upstairs to their restaurant and tea salon.  Definitely worth a stop, but avoid the latte.