The French gastronomic meal

What it is

The full festive form begins with an apéritif, a drink and a few small bites taken before sitting down. At the table there are at least four courses: a starter, a dish of fish or meat with vegetables, cheese, and dessert. A grand meal may have both fish and meat. It ends with coffee and sometimes a digestif, a glass of brandy or liqueur. The table is laid with care, and the pairing of each dish with a wine is part of the plan.

Everyday versions

Ordinary meals follow the same shape in smaller form. A weekday restaurant lunch is offered as a formule or menu: starter and main, or main and dessert, at a set price. The plat du jour, the dish of the day, is the one thing the kitchen has cooked fresh in quantity and is usually the best value. In Lyon, small traditional restaurants called bouchons serve hearty local dishes of pork, offal and pike dumplings at shared tables.

How it works

Lunch is served from about noon to two and dinner from about seven thirty. Outside those hours many kitchens are closed. Bread is put on the table without being asked for, and tap water in a carafe is free on request. Courses are not rushed, and the table is yours for the sitting. Cheese is offered from a board or trolley, and you choose a few. The bill is not brought until you ask.

How to do it

1. Greet the staff with bonjour or bonsoir when you walk in.
2. Look for the set menu or the plat du jour on the board.
3. Order all savoury courses at once. Dessert is ordered later.
4. Ask for une carafe d'eau if you want free tap water.
5. Ask for l'addition when you are ready to leave.

Good manners

• Keep bread on the tablecloth beside your plate, not on the plate.
• Keep both hands visible, with wrists resting on the table.
• Do not ask for the cheese and dessert to come together.

What is eaten

Pot-au-feuFrench boiled meat and vegetable stew served in two coursesCoq au vinFrench chicken braised slowly in red wine with lardons and mushroomsBlanquette de veauFrench veal stew in a creamy white sauceBeef bourguignonFrench beef stew simmered in red wine with onions, mushrooms and herbsQuenelleSoft dumplings of creamed fish or meat, shaped and poachedTarte TatinFrench upside-down tart with caramelized apples and pastryCrème brûléeRich vanilla custard with a brittle caramelized sugar topRatatouilleA Provençal stew of summer vegetables cooked in olive oilGratin dauphinoisThinly sliced raw potatoes baked slowly in cream from Dauphiné, FranceSole meunièreSole fish floured, fried in butter, and finished with lemon and parsley

Sources and further reading

• French cuisine on Wikipedia
• UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage: Gastronomic meal of the French
• France.fr: official tourism site of France