European tourist spots are home to no shortage of cheap places to eat.
Stroll down the beachfront of Playa de las Américas or Costa del Sol and you will be accosted by dozens of cheap eats offering three-course meals for under £10.
While many of these joints offer freezer-to-plate crowd pleasers, in one spot in France, a new wave of restaurants is redefining fine dining by serving haute cuisine for less than a cup of coffee.
Marseille, France’s oldest city, is home to around 10 restaurant solidaires, which are community projects to support both its customers and its employees.
Among these restaurants is Le République, a gourmet haunt where around 40 per cent of diners will pay just one euro for their three-course meal, according to the BBC.
These restaurants combine high-quality food with a social mission, often by being run as a non-profit or by using their profits to fund social initiatives.
All customers receive their bill discreetly after dining together, ensuring dignity for those paying a reduced tariff.
Aside from serving cheap meals to diners in need of nutritious cuisine, the restaurant’s central theme is ‘insertion professionnelle’ – helping marginalised people back into work.
Marseille, France’s oldest city, is home to around 10 restaurant solidaires, which are community projects to support both its customers and its employees
Among these restaurants is Le République, a gourmet haunt where around 40 per cent of diners will pay just one euro for their three-course meal
‘We’ve employed people with autism, single mothers who haven’t been able to work for 20 years, people who can’t read,’ said Sylvain Martin, who co-founded the restaurant with chef Sébastien Richard.
‘We have had so many profiles that I can’t list them all!’
Some staff have come to Le République from Baumettes Prison, Marseille’s toughest jail, where the last person in the Western world to be executed by guillotine took place in 1977.
Another of these locations is L’Après M, a former McDonald’s taken over by its redundant staff when the Sainte-Marthe franchise closed.
The name means ‘After McDonald’s’ in French.
The team purchased the premises in the working-class suburb of Marseille and reopened it as a social enterprise, serving gourmet burgers created by a three-star Michelin chef.
It functions as a food bank distributing food parcels, a canteen offering affordable meals, and a training space.
The most recent addition to Marseille’s restaurant solidaire scene is Chaleur, which opened in June 2025 and recently donated 300 meals to a workers’ strike.
Aside from serving cheap meals to diners in need of nutritious cuisine, the restaurant’s central theme is ‘insertion professionnelle’ – helping marginalised people back into work
Another of these locations is L’Après M, a former McDonald’s taken over by its redundant staff when the Sainte-Marthe franchise closed
According to the BBC, a blowout lunch with wine at Chaleur costs around €25 (£21), but if a patron explains that they’re in a penurious position, they can enjoy the exact same menu for a ‘suspended rate’ of just €8 (£6.90).
Across Marseille, prices vary by philosophy.
Some, like Le République, partner with charities to subsidise one-euro meals, while others, like Chaleur, operate on trust.
While the cheapest meals should be reserved for those most in need, you’re likely to get great value for money at any of these joints, making it well worth a visit if you find yourself in The Phocaean City.
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