Travel to Paris, Ile-de-France
French cuisine varies according to the season (Cuisine Specialties by season) . In summer, salads
and fruit dishes are popular because they are refreshing and produce is inexpensive and abundant. Greengrocers prefer to sell their fruit and vegetables at lower prices if needed, rather than see them rot in the heat. At the end of summer, mushrooms become plentiful and appear in stews throughout France. The hunting season begins in September and runs through February. Game of all kinds is eaten, often in elaborate dishes that celebrate the success of the hunt. Shellfish are at their peak when winter turns to spring, and oysters appear in restaurants in large quantities.
With the advent of deep-freeze and the air-conditioned hypermarché, these seasonal variations are less marked than hitherto, but they are still observed, in some cases due to legal restrictions. Crayfish, for example, have a short season and it is illegal to catch them out of season.
Structure of meals
Breakfast (Le petit déjeuner)is often a quick meal consisting of "tartines" (slices) of buttered french bread, croissants or pain au chocolat (a pastry filled with chocolate) along with coffee or tea. Children often drink hot chocolate in bowls along with their breakfast. Breakfast of some kind is always served in cafés opening early in the day.
Lunch
Lunch(Le déjeuner ) was once a two hour mid-day meal but has recently seen a trend toward the one hour lunch break. In some smaller towns the two hour lunch may still be customary. Sunday lunches are often longer and are taken with the family. Restaurants normally open for lunch at 12:00 noon and close at 2:30 pm. Many restaurants close on Saturday and Monday during lunch.
In large cities a majority of working people and students eat their lunch at a corporate or school cafeteria, which normally serve complete meals as described above; it is therefore not usual for students to bring their own lunch food. It is common for white-collar workers to be given lunch vouchers as part of their employee benefits. These can be used in most restaurants, supermarkets and traiteurs; however workers having lunch in this way typically do not eat all three dishes of a traditional lunch due to price and time considerations. In smaller cities and towns, some working people leave their workplaces to return home for lunch, generating four rush hours during the day. Finally, an also popular alternative especially among blue-collar workers is to lunch on a sandwich possibly followed with a dessert; both dishes can be found ready-made at bakeries and supermarkets for budget prices.
Dinner
Dinner (Le dîner ) often consists of three courses, hors d'oeuvre or entrée (introductory course often soup), plat principal (main course), and a cheese course or dessert, sometimes with a salad offered before the cheese or dessert. Yoghurt may replace the cheese course, while a normal everyday dessert would be fresh fruit. The meal is often accompanied by bread, wine and mineral water. Wine consumption has been dropping recently amongst young people. Fruit juice consumption has risen from 25.6% in 1996 to 31.6% in 2002. Main meat courses are often served with vegetables along with rice or pasta. Restaurants often open at 7:30pm for dinner and stop taking orders between the hours of 10:00pm and 11:00 pm. Many restaurants close for dinner on Sundays.
Beverages
Traditionally, France has been a culture of wine consumption. This characteristic has lessened with time. The consumption of low-quality wines during meals has been greatly reduced. Since the 1960s per capita wine consumption has dropped by 50 per cent and continues to decline. Beer is especially popular with the young. Other popular alcoholic drinks include pastis, an aniseed flavored beverage drink diluted with cold water, or cider.
The legal alcohol purchase age is 18 (previously 16, the age was raised by health minister Roselyne Bachelot in March 2009). Usually, parents tend to prohibit their children from consuming alcohol before these children reach their early teens. Students and young adults are known to drink heavily during parties, but usually drunkenness is not displayed in public. Public consumption of alcohol is legal, but driving under the influence can result in severe penalties.
French cuisine varies according to the season (Cuisine Specialties by season) . In summer, salads
and fruit dishes are popular because they are refreshing and produce is inexpensive and abundant. Greengrocers prefer to sell their fruit and vegetables at lower prices if needed, rather than see them rot in the heat. At the end of summer, mushrooms become plentiful and appear in stews throughout France. The hunting season begins in September and runs through February. Game of all kinds is eaten, often in elaborate dishes that celebrate the success of the hunt. Shellfish are at their peak when winter turns to spring, and oysters appear in restaurants in large quantities.With the advent of deep-freeze and the air-conditioned hypermarché, these seasonal variations are less marked than hitherto, but they are still observed, in some cases due to legal restrictions. Crayfish, for example, have a short season and it is illegal to catch them out of season.
Structure of meals
Breakfast (Le petit déjeuner)is often a quick meal consisting of "tartines" (slices) of buttered french bread, croissants or pain au chocolat (a pastry filled with chocolate) along with coffee or tea. Children often drink hot chocolate in bowls along with their breakfast. Breakfast of some kind is always served in cafés opening early in the day.
Lunch
Lunch(Le déjeuner ) was once a two hour mid-day meal but has recently seen a trend toward the one hour lunch break. In some smaller towns the two hour lunch may still be customary. Sunday lunches are often longer and are taken with the family. Restaurants normally open for lunch at 12:00 noon and close at 2:30 pm. Many restaurants close on Saturday and Monday during lunch.
In large cities a majority of working people and students eat their lunch at a corporate or school cafeteria, which normally serve complete meals as described above; it is therefore not usual for students to bring their own lunch food. It is common for white-collar workers to be given lunch vouchers as part of their employee benefits. These can be used in most restaurants, supermarkets and traiteurs; however workers having lunch in this way typically do not eat all three dishes of a traditional lunch due to price and time considerations. In smaller cities and towns, some working people leave their workplaces to return home for lunch, generating four rush hours during the day. Finally, an also popular alternative especially among blue-collar workers is to lunch on a sandwich possibly followed with a dessert; both dishes can be found ready-made at bakeries and supermarkets for budget prices.
Dinner
Dinner (Le dîner ) often consists of three courses, hors d'oeuvre or entrée (introductory course often soup), plat principal (main course), and a cheese course or dessert, sometimes with a salad offered before the cheese or dessert. Yoghurt may replace the cheese course, while a normal everyday dessert would be fresh fruit. The meal is often accompanied by bread, wine and mineral water. Wine consumption has been dropping recently amongst young people. Fruit juice consumption has risen from 25.6% in 1996 to 31.6% in 2002. Main meat courses are often served with vegetables along with rice or pasta. Restaurants often open at 7:30pm for dinner and stop taking orders between the hours of 10:00pm and 11:00 pm. Many restaurants close for dinner on Sundays.
Beverages
Traditionally, France has been a culture of wine consumption. This characteristic has lessened with time. The consumption of low-quality wines during meals has been greatly reduced. Since the 1960s per capita wine consumption has dropped by 50 per cent and continues to decline. Beer is especially popular with the young. Other popular alcoholic drinks include pastis, an aniseed flavored beverage drink diluted with cold water, or cider.
The legal alcohol purchase age is 18 (previously 16, the age was raised by health minister Roselyne Bachelot in March 2009). Usually, parents tend to prohibit their children from consuming alcohol before these children reach their early teens. Students and young adults are known to drink heavily during parties, but usually drunkenness is not displayed in public. Public consumption of alcohol is legal, but driving under the influence can result in severe penalties.
