The phrase fixed price is French for “fixed price.”
When a restaurant indicates that it is offering a prix fixe menu or a prix fixe dinner, that means it is offering a prix fixe meal. Generally, the words prix fixe are associated with a multi-course meal, such as a four-course prix fixe dinner or a three-course prix fixe lunch .
A three-course prix fixe meal usually consists of an appetizer, a main or main course, and a dessert.
Restaurants may offer prix fixe meals on special occasions, such as:
- Christmas day
- New Year Eve
- Valentine’s Day
- Easter
- Mother’s Day
- Father’s day
Other holiday menus can also be offered in this format. By offering a prix fixe menu, a restaurant can offer specialty creations, allowing the chef to focus on offering a few specialty dishes rather than a full menu or set of entrees. The benefit to the customer is that, assuming the options available for the fixed price meal courses are attractive, there is not much math! The price will be predetermined. They will add tax and you will add the tip. That’s what makes it different from an a la carte menu, where everyone chooses what they want from a menu, it could be three appetizers and a dessert, or just a main course or any combination, and then the total is counted at the end.
A restaurant may or may not offer a few options for each course of a prix fixe meal. As substitutions are generally not allowed, it is important to inquire about the prix fixe menu if the a la carte menu is not available on that occasion. However, some restaurants offer prix fixe menus in addition to their regular menus.
When a price is quoted for a prix fixe menu, it generally does not include drinks, taxes, or tips.
Pronunciation: pree feeks
Also known as: fixed price
Common misspellings: prix correction, prix correction
Examples: The Bistro offers a four-course set menu for Valentine’s Day. You can choose soup or salad; choose one of the three appetizers; choose one of the four main dishes; choose one of the three desserts. $ 49 per person, plus tax and tip.
