Food Culture in France

Ratatouille. Tartare de boeuf. Foie Gras.

While food is an important part of any culture,

French food is on another level.

From Bordeaux wines and Normandy cheeses to

Dijon mustard and Parisian Croque Monsieurs, millions

of foreigners come to Paris and other regions each year

to taste its cuisine and experience its culture

through taste and smell. 

In other words, French cuisine is like a tourist attraction.

While foreigners may interact with those who work

at cafés or boulangeries, they often are not able

to experience the ways in which the French themselves regard their food. 

Fortunately, my experience living with a French family

for the past 8 months has allowed me to see and learn

about such interactions. I am often able to eat

breakfast and dinner with my family, with an occasional

brunch on the weekend. Not only have these meals been enjoyable,

but they have also been insightful.

Through these meals, I have come to see cultural differences 

between France and the United States, my country of origin, 

surrounding the consumption and enjoyment of food.

These differences fascinate me, and below, I explain some

of these differences in more detail. 

The Parisian Diet

Parisians are world-famous for being thin, but one always wonders how they do it. With the abundance of boulangeries and the richness of their food, how is it possible that most stores in Paris only carry sizes 0-4? To start, let's look at what a Parisian eats during the week: for breakfast: a slice of brioche with jam or a croissant with a cup of coffee; for lunch, a baguette sandwich, quiche, or green salad (sometimes with a small dessert); for dinner, a meat dish, a vegetable dish, wine, and fruit or yogurt for dessert. Now, consider with alongside what a Parisian eats on the weekend: breakfast will remain the same on Saturday, but lunch will include a dessert, and 3-4 course dinner is often had out at a restaurant or a friend's house. Sunday, on the other hand, is more tranquil, but brunch equates to that of Saturday dinner. 

So...how do the Parisians do it? .... The answer lies not in what they eat, but how much they eat. Not only are restaurants proportions relatively small in Paris (especially to those found in the U.S.), but at home, Parisians only serve themselves what they know they can eat. It is considered rude to leave food on your plate so proportions are small at both the home and out at a restaurant. Thus, you serve and are served only what you can eat and it is up to you to leave none to waste.

It is this combination of small proportions, small meals, and avid walking that keeps Parisians famously thin. 

French Table Manners

The French are quite refined when it comes to table manners. As mentioned in the last paragraph, you serve yourself only what you can eat and leave nothing to waste. If there is extra sauce or residue, then it is expected that you place bread at the tip of a fork and eat the rest to leave the plate perfectly clean. Cutting any item of food is done with the fork in your left hand and the knife in your right, and the fork remains in your left hand during the entire meal. You never put too much food in your mouth as you are expected to carry on the conversation during each mouthful.

In regard to wine and cheese, wine is expected to be drunk slowly, and the taste and flavor of wine is changed from course and course. Regarding the cheese, the cheese is cut differently depending on what kind of cheese it is; since I am yet to be a connaisseur in cheese cutting, I usually just follow the person to my right. A baguette must accompany the eating of the cheese as cheese is never eaten plainly. However, the piece of bread cannot be placed on the plate, but to the side of your plate. You tear off a piece of bread, place the cheese on it, and then place the bread and cheese into your mouth. You are expected to serve yourself the right amount of bread and cheese so that there is, again, no left overs on your plate. (It must be noted, however, that cheese is usually served during a fancier 4 course meal and then followed by a dessert.)

Dessert is usually what follows the plat (or main dinner) during the weekday; however, dessert is not what you would typically expect. A weekday dessert is usually yogurt or fruit, which you can only eat with a fork and knife! (Interestingly, fruit is never eaten during breakfast) A brunch/Saturday dinner dessert is more along the lines of what you would expect: a chocolate mousse, crème brûlée, a fruit cake, etc.

Restaurant Tips

Ordering at a French restaurant is quite simple. Since most Parisian cafés have waiters whom speak English or offer menus in English, you should feel quite comfortable ordering. However, here are a few tips for those of you who aren't French speakers to improve your dining experience:

1) Always greet the hostess with either Bonjour (Good day) or Bonsoir (Good evening)
2) Never sit at an empty table; wait and asked to be seated
3) Please is s'il vous plaît (see-voo-play), and thank you is merci (mare-see)
4) I always order a watcher pitcher (une carafe d'eau) along with my meal since it is free and re-fillable
5) If you order meat, it is usually red and bloody; thus, if you want a well-cooked steak or hamburger, I recommend that you specify that you would like your meat bien cuit (bee-in quee), or well-cooked.
(However, I do recommend that you have your meat the French way!)
6) The check is l'addition, and a small tip is expected