I will very soon be introduced to the world of French food %26amp; dining with a 10 day visit to Paris and surrounding areas. Being a food lover, naturally I am quite excited. I realize probably one of the most common questions asked on this forum might perhaps be in regards to where to dine, but I am still curious as to what I may be expected to dine on?
I would really enjoy hearing about what some of the better (or best) meals others have had, specifically, what was on the menu?
Do restaurants commonly change there menus with the seasons or have more trademark or specialty dishes that are served all the time?
What are some very %26quot;French%26quot; dishes that I might not want to miss? Like Escargot for example... I have never had that...should it be at the top of my list, is that something I should definitely have while in Paris? Thanks so much %26amp; best regards, TC
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Our first meal in Paris is usually enjoyed at Le Vaudeville, on rue Vivienne--a dozen escargot with a carafe of the house white followed by a green salad and whichever dessert happens to appeal. This is a very good restaurant with attractive decor and a real parisian atmosphere.
The French are great makers of souffles, and the place to enjoy these is Le Souffle on rue du Mont Thabor, near the Tuilleries.
We like this place for lunch. I like to start with a tomato and basil or mushroom souffle, then the duck with peaches and a Grand Marinier souffle for dessert.
Foie gras is a treat and I like the way it is served at Le Suffren over near the Champ de Mars. Good escargots too. After dinner we like to walk over to see the twinkling lights on the Eiffel Tower, lit for a few minutes on the hour after dark.
The handy little book %26quot;Eating and Drinking in Paris%26quot; has a good menu translator besides being interesting to read.
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Love escargot, in the shell, the big ones. Harder to find than you would think.
Onion Soup.
Duck. It can be prepared a number of different ways. La Canard.
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Buy yourself %26quot;the Rough Guide to French Hotels and restaurants%26quot;, which is a translation of Routard.
This will not only give you a reasonably priced selection of some of the 8,000-9,000 restaurants in Paris, but take you off the tourist beaten track to places you might not have looked a second time at. Just as an indication of the surprises you can have, the best meal I have ever had in Paris was in a little back street restaurant in the 19th that is no longer there (sorry).
A lot of the pricier restaurants develop signature dishes, which means that the menu tends not to change, or if it does, it changes once for each season.
Escargot are something I can always give a miss - this isn%26#39;t squeamishness, because I like andouillette and gesiers. They are both in the %26quot;don%26#39;t ask%26quot; category of foods, but worth trying.
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Francophool, that all sounds most excellent. Sounds like the Escargot is something that I should not miss. Old traveler I will look for the big ones and give myself a treat at least one time. How are they normally served? I understand how some people who are not accustomed to eating them might be a little hesitant to try them, but I have to say that I believe they are something I will indeed enjoy!
WizardofAus, I had to google andouillette and gesiers. Andouillette brought me to a webpage entitled %26quot;things that stink%26quot;,Hmmm, had a large number of personal testimonials of people who have experienced them. Interesting. While I have always considered myself to be a person who would be willing to try most anything at least once, I think I would have to give one a close inspection before I would commit myself to %26quot;savoring%26quot; it! Now the gesiers, that I believe I could do. Thanks so much %26amp; regards, TC
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bump
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I have eaten snails since childhood( french family) ,, they are great,, if you like garlic,, which is of the course the best way to eat them, ,with lots of garlic butter( garlic, shallots, parsely and butter) in the shell , or in the dish, no difference really , you must of course eat with bread to soak up the garlicy butter.
I see no difference in eating a snail then a mussel , clam or oyster. Many people like clam chowder but not snails,, that is weird to me. Snails are farmed and very clean animals eating mostly greens, ,, mollucks eat fish poop,, LOL!
That said ,you must eat mussels ,, they do them many ways but wine and garlic are my fave,, but I have had some very good %26quot;exotic%26quot; types lately, lemon grass and curry flavors..
As for more common ( I won%26#39;t say traditional as I am not able to judge what others eat, only what my family normally enjoys),, duck breast(my fave), chicken, pintarde( poultry similar to chicken/turkey) rabbit, and pork dishes are very popular. As are oysters( raw are best, on shell with miginette sause, although many with disagree there, LOL ) ,
My opinion is beef is best stewed in France,, the steaks ( unless a filet) are tougher and chewier then I prefer.
Pates and confits,, yum, love rabbit pate with good bread. All cheeses. I love the stinky/runny ones!!
Pastries,, well what can I say,, you will see.
Cassis sorbet,, heaven.
PS I personally don%26#39;t like the really big snails as I like my snails bubbling hot( as they should be served) and I have gotten big ones still only just hot inside.. but they don%26#39;t want butter to burn .
I love the food in France,, even a simple meal of good bread, cheeses and some lovely ham slices makes my mouth water just thinkng about it..
PPSS,, My personal opinion is they do not do Asian food well,, only my experience. I live in a city that does Asian food much much better as we are heavily populated by Asian peoples,,and on the sea so of course great sushi here!
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Duck, magret (breast, cooked pink) and confit (legs, preserved in duck fat, fished out and crisped up, not as fatty as it sounds) Foie Gras, but a one off try this, as it is so rich. The real stuff is like eating butter and you have to put it on bread. If it is cold, cassoulet with beans and sausage and duck in a casserole.
Depending on the time of the year, berries. The fraises de Bois are divine, sort of tiny essence of strawberry. Apsaragus, big and fat with a poached egg on top. Yum!
On a lighter note, many cafes do %26quot;salades composee%26quot; which are a meal in themselves and very good. Great for lunch. In the Dordogne region, famous for the duck and foie gras, salad with gesiers (duck gizzards) is common. Others swear by the street crepes but they have never appealed to me.
Berthillon ice cream, especially in the Berthillon shop on the Isle St Louis for just the right atmosphere.Try the cassis flavour, also raspberry and chocolate.
Tart Tatin, an upside down apple tart, is marvellous but I have only once ever felt I got a really good one, thick and soaked in syrupy juices.
An everywhere, creme brulee, served in wide shallow terracotta coloured dishes with the sugar toffeed on the top.
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Hi overthehills_faraway,
We discover 2 years ago a american guide called Zagat. Real cool, critics very accurate. In a month we tried maybe 18 and we were very very satisfied.
So enjoy!
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Many restaurants have Paté de Compagne or Paté Rustique as a starter. Someimtes they call it Paté de Maison, which is essentially the same thing. I highly recommend it. It is served with little sour pickles called cornichons and good crusty bread; maybe mustard or pickled onions once in a while. It%26#39;s really good.
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One of the most memorable meals I had in Paris was Moules Provincale, mussels with tomatos, herbs, and garlic. I can%26#39;t recall where I had this but here is a recipe...
epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Mussels-wi…
Pjk
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