THE 9 BEST FRENCH RESTAURANTS IN SAIGON (2023)

FAQs

What is the main meal in France? ›

In France, lunch is typically the main meal of the day, and French people spend more time enjoying lunch than most people in other countries.

What is a typical French dinner menu? The typical French dinner menu is salade verte (green salad) followed by viande avec garniture (meat with vegetables), fromage, and dessert. You may also see potage (soup) and hors d'oeuvres (appetizers) as a first course.

An usual French lunch will include: an appetizer (une entrée), such as a mixed salad, soup, terrine or pâté; main course, (le plat principal), choice of beef, pork, chicken, or fish, with potatoes, rice, pasta and/or vegetables; cheese course (from a local selection) and/or a sweet.

The cuisine is distinctly Mediterranean, featuring plenty of fish, vegetables, olive oil, garlic, and herbs. The region's most famous dish is probably bouillabaisse, a fish stew that comes from Marseille.

A French breakfast is sweet. It is composed of slices of buttered bread and jam spread on it, sometimes croissants or other pastries and cereals. Usually, the drinks are coffee, orange juice or milk.

A typical French breakfast is light, sweet, and fairly simple. It's usually made up of breakfast cereals, a tartine (slice of bread with topping) and a drink (tea, coffee, orange juice). It's usually eaten between 6 AM and 8 AM.

The traditional evening meal in France is considered a family affair – around a table, lots of chatter, more good food, and an all-round convivial experience that rolls along merrily for an hour or so. They usually run from roughly 7.30pm until 8.45pm.

If you don't enjoy drinking wine, then, just drink water. French people love water as well, and will often have some fancy mineral water, sparkling (de l'eau pétillante) or still (de l'eau plate) ready for a dinner with guests. It's not customary in France to drink a soda, milk or juices during dinner.

Crème brûlée is one of the most popular French desserts of all time, and for good reason. The two contrasting layers of luscious vanilla cream under a layer of crunchy caramelized sugar are a perfect marriage. This dessert stands out from all the rest.

The three meals of the day– breakfast, lunch, and dinner– often include both bread and cheese. Maybe that is why the French rarely snack. But truth be told, once you've tried French cuisine, you won't blame them– a bag of chips is worth skipping to save room for a sweet crêpe any day.

What do people in France eat for snack? ›

Breakfast around 8:00 AM. Lunch at noon. Dinner at 7:00 or 8:00 in the evening. Children have an afternoon snack (sweet not savory) at around 4:00 PM.

With its formal techniques, emphasis on fresh ingredients and simple flavors, pride in presentation, and rich and colorful history, French cuisine truly has come to rule the world, laying the foundations for many other styles and specialties.

Enjoying Breakfast In France

French people typically eat pastries, breads, eggs, and yogurt for breakfast. From croissants and pain au chocolat to omelets and crêpes, these breakfast foods will give you a boost of energy.

You also won't see any porridge on the menu because oatmeal porridge is not eaten in France as part of their breakfast. You can, however, often find eggs in a scrambled form or even poached or hard-boiled.

Just like turkey is to Thanksgiving, a French Christmas main dish is almost always a large roasted “dinde” (turkey). A French Christmas turkey is traditionally made with a chestnut stuffing, and served with roasted potatoes, chestnuts and sometimes cooked apples around it.

The average French woman today is just over 5 feet 3 inches tall and 137.6 pounds, compared to 5 feet 2 1/2 inches tall and 133.6 pounds in 1970. Women's waistlines in particular have thickened.

A bowl is (generally) bigger, which means more coffee and easier dipping for your croissant. Not to mention, drinking your coffee from a bowl also negates the need for those mugs.

French people will sometimes have eggs for breakfast. Eggs are usually cooked hard-boiled with salt and pepper. Soft-boiled eggs are also very popular, and you can even find them on restaurant menus for breakfast (and lunch).

Champagne is one of the top French alcoholic drinks consumed around the world. Champagne is one of the country's most popular alcoholic beverages worldwide for its elegance and sophisticated taste.

What are the 4 meals in France? ›

While the main dish of a traditional French dinner is usually meat or fish, it can be vegetarian in some homes. French people are not as attached to their meats as Americans are — you can find them eating pasta or rice just as often as steak.

Tipping in French restaurants and cafés is not expected

This is indicated on the menu or the bill with the phrase “service compris.” Nevertheless, if you have a friendly or efficient waiter, you can leave a small gratuity (un pourboire), but this is by no means required.

Pastis. Similar to absinthe, pastis is considered a national drink in France, together with Champagne and cognac.

Wondering how to say Cheers in French? You can say “Santé” which translates to “to your health”. A more polite way is to say “À votre santé!”, which is another common way to say cheers in French.

Wine, the favourite alcohol of the French

He is nominated by 50% of them. It is the national alcohol, employing thousands of people and is famous all over the world. It is ahead of beer, cited by 39% of respondents. Champagne is cited one time out of three, even though almost 9 out of 10 French people drink it.

"La Galette des Rois" (King's cake) is a cake to celebrate the Epiphany in France on every 6th of January. During this time of the year, French bakeries are filled with a traditional pastry: La Galette.

Eclair. Like the croissant, the eclair is among the most popular French pastries. It refers to an oblong-shaped choux pastry filled with pastry cream and topped with chocolate ganache. The eclair is one of my favorite French pastries but I never knew that its name literally means “flash of lightning”.

Lunch is usually between midday and 2 pm, when the kitchen will go off duty. Watch out, as during these times, service can be rather slow if you find yourself in a business area. Parisians don't dine until at least 8.30 pm as prior to that, time is set aside for “l'apéritif”.

What do the French eat the most every day? ›

Foods that are a staple of the French diet include full-fat cheese and yogurt, butter, bread, fresh fruits and vegetables (often grilled or sautéed), small portions of meat (more often fish or chicken than red meat), wine, and dark chocolate.

The French diet consists of real food

French women shop daily at local markets for fresh vegetables, fish, meats, fruits, and dairy products. These whole foods are usually grown by local farmers in soil that are naturally rich (what we would call organic food).

Chouquette is a kind of French snack. It has a unique taste, which is sweet and salty at the same time. People can eat it any time of the day, but it is usually served with a cup of coffee in the morning.

Definition: Goûter v. to taste, n. a light meal in the afternoon. Goûter is an institution in France without a real equivalent in British culture. It's tea-time, almost religiously eaten at 4.30 pm, almost exclusively by children as they come out of school, consisting solely of sweet treats.

Bread and cheese are staples in a French diet and after you've tasted authentic, French bread and French cheese you'll wonder why they don't just eat it all the time. Unlike baguettes that you might find at home, a real French baguette is crispy and firm with a wispy, fluffy inside.

Foods that are a staple of the French diet include full-fat cheese and yogurt, butter, bread, fresh fruits and vegetables (often grilled or sautéed), small portions of meat (more often fish or chicken than red meat), wine, and dark chocolate.

The French typically eat pastries for breakfast, potatoes for lunch, and soups for dinner. France, like most developed countries, also has its share of meat eaters, vegetarians, and salty-and-sweet food enthusiasts.

French people usually eat a smaller meal for dinner, such as a soup or salad with bread and a dessert (often a yoghurt or a slice of cheese). Considering French people famously don't snack, they must survive a long break between lunch and dinner. The solution is that lunch is the biggest meal of the day.

Unlike in America, lunch a big meal in France. That's why there's a big break at lunch at almost every place of business. Sometimes even two hours.