If you are travelling in Boston or Paris (e.g. not cooking your own meals) $20 is really a pretty restrictive budget. Scaling your expectations elsewhere similarly will mean you can probably also do it on a lot less in India...
You mean eating out? When I'm traveling on a budget, I tend to just buy bread and cheese in a grocery store, and use a knife (or whatever I can improvise) to make a meal on the go.
Although I agree with you it's also worth pointing out that very often the bread and cheese _is_ the local food. Even in places that aren't known for their cheese, if you head to a market you might find an inexpensive, unique and rather tasty cheese.
No, that's not healthy. I didn't say "eat nothing but bread and cheese". If someone recommends you try the bonbons in France, do you eat 3 meals a day of only bonbons for 30 days? When people suggest you try a food they usually aren't suggesting you try and make it your entire diet. I was instead recommending eating the local bread and cheese (of course in moderation.) For the places I've lived in this holds:
- NYC? Get a bagel with cream cheese, or a chopped cheese ($3).
- Idaho Falls? Go to Reed's Dairy and the bakery by the public library with free samples (can't remember the name.) Amazing stuff, and pretty cheap.
- Netherlands? Cheese is pretty cheap and good quality everywhere in the country. Bread is incredibly cheap, and even if you're literally surviving off change you find on the sidewalk you can afford it.
- New Hampshire? Go to Cabot Cheese. Best cheddar in the world.
Of course also remember to eat fruits and veggies, but those are always cheap. I just bought 3 large peppers and a kilo of apples for €1.50 here in the Netherlands.
There's nothing wrong with inexpensive food. You should try the bagel and schmear in nyc, and if you haven't had pork belly buns, tacos de lengua, or pupusas con curtido you should drop what you're doing and fix that. All of those are amazing. Pupusas, in particular, are pork and cheese in a pancake.
Cabot cheese is the best cheddar though? That's fighting words if you grew up near Wisconsin. If you're ever near there go to Bobby Nelson Cheese Shop. The aged cheddar is amazing and they make their sausage.