French cuisine

My granddaughter and her boyfriend just got home from a week vacation in France - in the Paris vicinity. They stayed with the family of her boyfriend's friend, and had a marvelous time. She stopped over yesterday and we poured over 500+ pictures that she took, and the scenery was amazing - Paris, views from the top of the Eiffel Tower, castles, Normandy, etc. Really the trip of a lifetime.

I was asking her about the food there - she said it's definitely "different" and was glad to be back home to eat what she is accustomed to eating. They stayed away from the trendy and expensive eateries tho since they were on a budget. She said surprisingly enough, she saw people drinking more beer than wine. You can get pizza, but she said she never saw any made with anything other than tuna or ham. YUK - tuna on pizza???? Their house host and hostess made them lasagna one night - made with salmon, spinach and I can't remember what else she said was in it. Every morning they had crepes made with fresh fruits from their gardens - now that would be to my liking.

Anyone here ever been to France?? If so, how did you find the food to be? She also said the personal hygiene of most residents leaves a lot to be desired too - especially if you happen to be in a small taxi with them. :eek:

Now it's back to reality next Tuesday when she starts her senior year at the university. Doesn't seem possible that those first 3 years went by so fast.

I went to Paris for a few days in 2006. We stayed at the Hilton at the foot of the Eiffel Tower. The first night we got there, we ate at an outside cafe. I ordered quiche. It tasted fine. The only thing I found odd with that was that it had green beans in it. It may just have been me, but I'd never had green beans in quiche before. (I also paid $9 for a bottle of Coke there too. I had been in Prague for a week before that and had not had any soft drinks. I was craving one, so I splurged.) We had breakfast at the hotel. For other meals, many times we went around the corner to a little pastry/bakery shop and bought food and took it with us. We had several picnics at the foot of the Eiffel Tower. I do remember eating lunch at another cafe one day. I had a ham sandwich on a baguette. That bread is so "crispy" that it will cut your gums if you aren't careful. The most memorable thing about eating anywhere in Europe is how long it takes! If you go to a restaurant, plan on 2-3 hours for your meal.

The "personal hygiene" issue is one that is classic French - after all Napoleon famously wrote to Josephine "Do not bath, I am coming home," so that is totally a matter of cultural preference!

I have never been to France, but the Louvre is on my list of someday places to visit!

And I adore crunchy baguettes like that - even if they bruise the roof of my mouth! The squishy ones are just not right to me!

Yes - breads are very big over there. She said it's bread in some form for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and in between too! They would see people walking down the streets eating bread any time of day.

I've never been but my son and his wife went a few years ago. They did find the food quite different but they tried a lot of different things and found some of it was pretty good. The first thing they did mention was the hygiene, a few times they were almost gagging . Another thing they mentioned was that almost everyone has little dogs ( very spoiled) that they take everywhere and out there the dogs just go do their thing wherever they want and no one picks it up---but they have tons of men wearing green suits all over the place who pick up litter and dog do all day long. They loved everywhere they visited but did say they are just not clean out there.
I think they enjoyed the arts the most besides the old buildings and stories that go along with them.