1. Baguettes – Perhaps you have an image of a French person crossing the street with baguette in hand. That is a reality… every day, French people visit the Boulangerie (Bakery) to get a baguette for breakfast, lunch and dinner (ok, maybe they don’t go 3 times, but I assure you they go at least once a day). Baguettes don’t keep very well, thus the daily ritual. Bread is important at meals; it can help you get the last bit of meat off your plate, and it is totally appropriate to use it to mop up the sauce (yes, clean your plate!). And without baguettes, where would you put your cheese?
2. Cheese – if you remember me as the child who loved American cheese and cheesewiz, you must know my reaction when encountered with the cheese section at the grocery store. Cheeses that are usually quite expensive in the US (Roquefort or Gruyere, to name a few) are locally produced and cheaper. Goat cheese, sheep cheese, cheese that is black and smells horrible (stinky cheese, anyone?), yes you can find it in your local shop.
3. Sausage – also known as Charcuterie, sausage is very popular here. Not your breakfast patty, and quite frankly I don’t want to know how it’s made, the sausages here come in all kinds of variety. I tried andouillette which was described to me as having a “strong smell” and I thought it was quite good. You can imagine my surprise when I read the English translation (chitterlings). Lardon, which some say is just bacon in a fattier form, is also very popular in cooking. Honestly, I don’t know how French people stay so thin, because between sausage and cheese, they are pretty much consuming 100 percent fat.
4. Game creatures – at a Saturday market, I watched a child with amusement as he passed a basket full of life rabbits, tapping his mother’s shoulder and pointing. The next stand was butchering rabbits, and I think the little boy got a dose of reality. Duck and goose is also popular (foie gras is good, though my love of waterfowl may outweigh my desire to eat their livers) along with horse (…. Yes, not kidding). Sorry to break the stereotype, but apparently snails and frog legs are only popular dishes for Christmas dinner or other special occasions. Mussels and oysters can be eaten any day, however.
5. Wine – yes a glass of wine in a restaurant is cheaper than soda. And you can find very cheap bottles of wine in the store (I’m talking 2 euros for a Bordeaux!) Wine is often used in cooking, and don’t let a French person tell you they don’t know anything about wines. Order foie gras and a glass of red and expect their disapproval. Two weeks ago, the Beaujolais came out and flooded all the stores and bars. The Beaujolais tradition is essentially a bunch of vineyards racing to get their wine out first. Now, if you know anything about wine, you can guess that a wine from 2008 isn’t going to have the best taste (it hasn’t had enough time to really develop its flavors). The French people talked about how “degueulasse” (worse than disgusting) and I can’t say that I was particularly impressed either. But it’s a tradition so…
6. Coffee – order a coffee, you get an espresso, in a tiny cup, served very hot and requires a lot of sugar. But I am a total coffee addict. Normally served after you have finished eating (not while you eat), it is very popular in France. Picture this, sitting in a café wearing your beret and sailor shirt, sipping your coffee and discussing existentialism. (ok, that never happened, but doesn’t it just seem so French?) I’ll never go to starbucks again, mark my words.
7. Desserts – Pastries (chocolate croissants, tarts, crumbles) can be purchased at the bakery. One popular item is the tarte tatin, an upside down apple tarte. Ice cream appears on most menus, along with chocolate mousse and crème brulee. Actually, desserts are probably the easiest things to order in France because they are called the same in the U.S. Cheese is often a dessert (an assortment plate). And of course waffles and crepes drenched in chocolate are good too.
8. Non- GMO – in the US we often get a lot of disapproval from Europe about our use of Genetically Modified Organisms. If they do cause cancer, 22 years of consuming those means I am doomed. I will say though I think there is a difference in the tastes of some items, like beef, chicken, and fruit (as in they taste a lot better). You can even order a burger raw here… wouldn’t suggest it though.
9. Health Warnings? – When you see an advertisement in the US for cigarettes, it is always accompanied with a health warning, albeit brief (consuming tobacco may lead to addiction or something along those lines). Well here, coca cola, cheese, cookies, all have warning labels. “Avoid eating too much fat and sugars and get lots of exercise” marks both print and tv ads. This is new in France following concerns about obesity and you can imagine the difficulties that could follow (how do you tell French people to stop eating their fatty cheese?)
10. Meal Times – Lunch is traditionally between 12 and 2:00. If you don’t want to eat during this time, that’s ok, but don’t expect to get anything done. Banks and some stores close during lunch hours. If you are hungry between 2 and 6, don’t expect to eat. Restaurants, bakeries, even some groceries stores close during this time. Though they re-open at 6, dinner usually isn’t until 8. And Sundays, most stuff is closed and if it’s opened it has limited hours.
11. Restaurants - it’s often a better deal to order the MENU or a set price menu, with entrée, main dish and dessert, so expect to be sitting there enjoying your meal for a while. Aperitifs are often served before dinner; pastis (licorice flavored liquor mixed with water) and Kir (champagne-like white wine served with a fruity syrup) are popular. Finally, servers don’t get paid based on tips, so the good thing is they don’t harass you. On the other hand, if you want your check, you have to flag down the server because it would be rude for him/her to bring it to you before you asked.
12. Random etiquette – Salad is eaten after meals (though it is okay to eat it first too). It is totally appropriate to put your bread on the table. You eat your fruit with a knife. And I think French people eat really fast, but maybe I eat slow.
13. French Fast Food – consists of Crepes (salted with cheese or sweet with Nutella), sandwiches (tuna and ham are popular), Shwarma (lamb, Middle Eastern sandwich), and Panini. These you can get on the go and during non-traditional meal times. French fries are served with either mustard or mayo.
14. American Food – if you were worried about eating duck liver served with snails, don’t worry. If you visit, you will find some of your American favorites. Downtown there is a McDonald’s (MacDo’s) with the infamous Royale with cheese (pulp fiction, anyone?). Pizza Hut is on my street, and a little bit further down is a Domino’s. There are plenty of KFCs in Paris. And to top it off, there is a Tex Mex restaurant in town, complete with country music, burritos, and margaritas. And it is way popular with French people on their lunch breaks.
2 comments:
Hi Justine,
Let me please add some comments.
1-You're totally right for the Baguette. The French can't eat without it. But be honest, it's much better than a bagel, isnt'it?
2-In France, one says there is one cheese for each day of the year. I disagree with you when you say some stink. They may smell strong but they are never bad. Taste them with a good red wine and you'll tell me how good it is.
5-Who said the Beaujolais was "dégueulasse" ? It is certainly not the best French wine but it's not all that bad. A piece of advice - Taste your Foie gras with a glass of Côteaux du Layon, a tiny vineyard located near Saumur, along the Loire river. Absolutely delicious !
6-What else ?
8-It is crazy to hear you say that some items taste different than in the US. It might be a first clue meaning that José Bové is right !
At last, there is a feature you don't talk about. In France, there are people who eat "mild" butter-totally insipid- and others, like me, who eat salt butter. Check around you. Oh, I was to forget. Between my Baguette and my cheese-might be some Camembert, I put salt butter. Bonne dégustation !
I'm marking your words honey!! I'm marking your words!!!
I absolutely agree with you on European cheeses, though. I never liked Grueyere until I spent time in Europe. There is nothing...NOTHING...NO-THING....EN-OH-TEE-AYCH-EYE-EN-GEE like a fresh baguette, split, smeared with BUTTER (from a can is cool :-), layered with slices of Grueyere and topped with another piece of buttered baguette.
As for the sausages - um....since I am not a consumer of le cochon, that kinda puts me out of the sausage area. But....you know...it's kinda the same as sausages here - some pig intestines stuffed with a mash of various meat parts, spices, some kind of filler and tied together at the ends.....
In DC at many of the upscale (coming soon to my neighborhood courtesy of GENTRIFICATION!!) liquor stores, there are big Beaujolais parties in the fall. The whole countdown thing is kind of a big deal. yeah....
Soooo anyhow....How did you Thanksgiving go? Looking at the photos, seems like a smashing success. How was the mac and cheese received? For Christmas, you have to make sweet potato pie, though!! AND GREENS!! Ask your dad to bring you some when he comes!!
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