I visited the French city with a huge street food scene from Tunisian sandwiches to massive pizzas

THERE were many shocked reactions slipping from my mouth as I sauntered around the Vieux Port in central Marseille.

Yachts bobbed on the water, as the Belle Époque buildings cast shadows over pavements thronged with lunching locals.

Marsielle harbour and Cathedral[/caption]

Take a stroll in the lush lanes of Le Panier Quarter[/caption]

“Wow, that sea is the deepest blue,” I uttered out loud.

But it was declaring, “How much?” with an emphasis on the first word that really caused passers-by to stare.

I was looking at the cost of bouillabaisse at a harbourside restaurant.

This is a classic dish of Marseille — a big bowl of scorpion fish, mullet, monkfish and shellfish, served in a flavoursome broth rich in saffron, fennel, tomatoes and herbs.

Slices of toasted baguette accompany it, and a rich, garlicky rouille sauce.

It’s a phenomenal dish, but I wince at the £150 price tag — which, it transpires, is quite typical for this restaurant.

If tradition costs this much, then I needed to embrace modernity — and fast.

Hitting the narrow streets of the Noailles district, I found an area unlike anywhere else I’d seen in France.

Marseille’s deep south location is home to old communities from Italy, Syria and North African countries, among many other places.

They make up an unstoppable street food scene.

At Chez Yassine, I queue with locals for a Sandwich Tunisien, a bargain at £7.

Served in a nutty flatbread called melewi made with semolina, mine was stuffed with an indecent amount of tangy tuna, green peppers, olives, tabbouleh and ricotta.

So I treated a cat prowling around the gorgeous Le Panier — a formerly rough nearby neighbourhood that, like much of the rest of this boisterous city, is ditching its blue-collar roots in favour of a bohemian atmosphere rich in wisteria and bijou corner cafes.

An hour later I stumbled across Grenade at Pistache, a Syrian cafe on the chi-chi Rue Saint-Ferreol.

I asked advice from a Syrian customer and plumped for a trio of deep-fried, tennis-ball-sized falafels with a greedy dollop of hummus on top. The cost: a measly £7.

Crunch of batter

I’d had what felt like two full meals already, but next I chomped on the distinctly Marseillais take on the humble pizza at Pizza Charly.

This slice is a 50/50 affair, with one end loaded with cheese and the other anchovies.

At £1.40 a slice they fuel the locals on nights out.

Sated as I was, after much searching I find the next best thing to bouillabaisse in the form of a sandwich.

This feast is unique to the minuscule Pain a l’ail cafe, a few streets back from the marina.

I gratefully demolish half a fresh baguette, stuffed seafood and served with a pot of the rouille sauce.

At ten quid I didn’t think I could top this affordable alternative to the crown prince of Marseille dishes, until I stumbled upon En Cornet, a spot right on the harbour itself.

Shell out for an expensive bouillabaisse[/caption]

The Pain a l’ail cafe’s bargain seafood baguette[/caption]

You can easily wait an hour for a table, but a takeaway cone of fresh seafood is the quicker option.

Mine was piled high with deep-fried smelt fish, squid and prawns, topped with a lemon wedge and served with a pot of extremely garlicy aioli sauce.

Feeling the crunch of batter and the tenderness of the squid under the afternoon sun was perfection. Not bad for £12.

France is rightly known for its high-end cuisine.

But, down in sunny, noisy, effusive Marseille, the quality is just as high but the prices, if you know where to go, won’t even break your small-change stash, let alone your credit card.