<p>alwaysamom-- YES Cobies!! (and having flip flops on, a sunburned nose, and a little salt water in your hair makes the whole experience even better!!) Is there anything as great as the Cape in the summer?</p>
<p>Cheap Eats:</p>
<p>LA: reasonable and good: I liked Chaya Brasserie, Le Petit Bar, Locanda Venetta, Chan Dara, and Mistral (Valley) but this is now 10 years ago. </p>
<p>When I was a poor twentysomething in NYC I would go to the Second Avenue Deli and get chopped liver, then go tot the Hot Bialy place on 14th street for delicious bialys and then I would FEAST.</p>
<p>Cheap Paris:</p>
<p>Le Petit Zinc was not too bad once upon a time…
Chez Marianne-- felafel very cheap
Chez la Vielle–trad cafe
rue Mouffetard market; buy cheese, pate, bread, fruit, then picnic in Les Arenes
Fantastic Vietnamese place on rue Marbeuf or rue Pierre Charron, just off Chs-Elysees, but I can’t remember the name!</p>
<p>Le Stella & Le Cherche Midi from my other list are also very reasonable (<50 Euros pp, plus wine.)</p>
<p>Note that most restaurants in Paris are cheap (actually, free!) when you are a 22 year old american girl…</p>
<p>BIG SUR – To add to the Big Sur list, and in a lower price range: Pre-yuppie, pre-hippy, pretty much pre-everything else at Big Sur, was the Big Sur Inn (I believe it’s also called Deetjen’s or something like that) a ramshackle, falling down collection of cottages with a restaurant with wonderful food. The floor slopes, the windows leak, they light candles and it’s wonderfully romantic. Breakfasts are great. Years ago, I had a sneezing fit at breakfast there and a waitress rushed up with a huge glass of fresh squeezed orange juice for my health. I wouldn’t stay there unless you have a tolerance for funky (as in: not always enough hot water, and paper-thin walls) – which we do, when we’re feeling nostalgic. But I’d eat there any time.</p>
<p>sac, did you ever eat at “The Farm” in Santa Cruz? Sounds like the same vibe.</p>
<p>Deetjens in Big Sur! I stayed there when I was in college… it is exactly as you as described and I haven’t thought about it in years…</p>
<p>NYC: Gothan Bar & Grill
SF: Fleur de Lys
Wine Country: Tra Vigne in St Helena (although everyone raves about French Laundry I have not eaten there)
Mendocino: Cafe Beaujolais</p>
<p>hmmm sense a 'french theme" here…</p>
<p>Newsgirl, when I was in San Francisco for the summer back in 2000, I went to St Helena and had dinner at a place called Terra. It was amazing. If you like Tra Vigne, you would have certainly liked Terra. </p>
<p>Another nice restaurant in wine country is Bistro Jeanty, in Yountville, right next to the French Laundry. Not quite as good as the French Laundry, but still excellent.</p>
<p>Alex: I will have to try those when I am back there (not in foreseeable future- oh well) </p>
<p>Meanwhile, maybe I can get someone with bucks to take me to Per Se, Keller’s other restaurant here in NYC, since I wont get to French Laundry anytime soon…</p>
<p>Philly - Le Bec Fin, Morimoto, Susanna Foo, Budakkhan, Fountain, Django, POD, la Boheme.</p>
<p>Bern- how is Tangerine or Fork ? Going to Philly for an upcoming weekend and am looking at those two…</p>
<p>In the extremely unlikely event that any of you ever make it to Detroit, or Ann Arbor for that matter, I will be happy to suggest some good restaurants for you. To suggest any in this thread, amongst the LA, SF, Philly, NY and Paris suggestions, is to open up a Pandora’s box of Detroit jokes.</p>
<p>UMDAD, glad to see someone speak for Michigan! Detroit has several good restaurants. The Tribute was excellent. The Lark is great. Two of my favourite restaurants in Michigan are Emily’s and Cafe Bon Homme. But my most favourite restaurant in the State is Tapawingo, up near the tip of the mitten, in a small town called Ellsworth. Excellent regional cuisine.</p>