Our Paris budget was too meagre to be even called shoestring- but one temptation we succumbed to was that of the cafés. I mean, we couldn’t go to Paris and not eat at a café, could we? They stand along every street, usually spilling onto the street itself, with neat little tables covered with checked tablecloths; a tantalising aroma of coffee and freshly baked bread; a warm and very inviting friendliness, and the most stunning of food.

We’d been told by everybody we’d asked that the cafés to look out for were the ones which had Parisians in them, not tourists- and the result of that was some of the best dining experiences ever. Not Michelin, but good, wholesome food which was utterly delectable- and didn’t cost an arm and a leg.

One of the best cafés we went to was a tiny one called Le Progres, in Montmartre. It was lunchtime, and the dozen-odd tables in the café were all in use, packed with French workmen. A small one-room cafe, Le Progres was the no-frills restaurant: wooden tables and chairs, very little space between tables; no piped music but a cheerful bustle about it.

The entire place was handled by a staff of just three: a waitress (very efficient), a barmaid (very busty) and a shaggy dog (very black and with the most mournful eyes ever- especially when he was sitting and staring beseechingly at us gobbling our food!).

The lunch was a table d’hôte which allowed us to choose from a range of three or four appetizers, main courses and desserts. What I opted for turned out to be spectacular: a gorgeous mozzarella and tomato salad, fragrant with olive oil; juicy escalopes of turkey with sauce normande and flat noodles; crusty French bread, a glass of red wine, and a packed-with-apple tarte auz pommes. All of it was luscious, and just for 63 francs. (The price, incidentally, is mentioned on a blackboard outside each cafe- along with the day's menu- so we actually walked down the street glancing at a number of blackboards before deciding where we wanted to eat.)

All in all, it was great value for money- not high-falutin' dining, but good food, friendly people and a comfortable meal- and it endeared us to Parisian cafés for life.