The French take their food seriously! Meals are treated like a theatrical production served with proper wine for the food/season and numerous courses. It is not uncommon to spend 3-4 hours eating a leisurely dinner. If you want to really piss off someone who is French- try interrupting them in the middle of a meal/repas…it is a huge faux-pax.
If you are outside of a major city, super markets and fast food chains, as we know it, do not exist. The French want everything fresh, in season, and picked up at their local market where they know the farmer, butcher, and boulangerie (baker). If there is a problem with the produce, the message will travel from neighbor to village in record speed. Most markets we’ve frequented have been open at least twice during the week but in Aix and larger cities there is an outdoor market open 6 days a week.
We’ve had our fair share of amazing food so far this trip, but this is a post about some things you probably should not be eating in France- or anywhere else for that matter… Did I really eat this?
Foie gras in a tin can purchased from a random street market in Paris… Everyone says it is fine to eat foie gras this way but honestly it does not compare to what we’ve had in restaurants in the Perigord and surrounding areas where one might actually see a duck or a goose. [Ed. We heard that foie gras is illegal in California, and were wondering which would be more serious: FedExing some foie gras or some ‘weed’ to an inlaw?]
Truffle Potato chips– we are addicted to this snack- especially when we are driving- The smell of truffle when you open the bag is intoxicating! Douglas believes they increase MPG.
A dinner style egg on a palmier. Sorry I did not take a pic of this breakfast. So one of my favorite french pastries is a light and flaky palmier and Douglas’ favorite egg is his Mom’s ‘dinner style’ egg. So he put these two together for me and created a ‘dinner style palmier’. Really, really, yummy. [Ed. a huge part of a Palmier taste is the sugar that coats it. They vary in size from biscuit-sized to extended plate sized. So dropping an egg on top is somewhat like, pardon, French toast.]
Croissants from just the ‘super market’ or an ‘unknown bakery’ or any croissant ‘the day after’…no pic required. Do not EVER eat a day-old croissant in France. The best are when you enter the Boulangerie and get one from the cooling rack. Yes, it is fine to ask for one from the rack.
Mussels in the month of June. The locals do not eat mussels during any month that does not have an ‘r’ in it. (like eating oysters in NOLA) The mussels looked beautiful but were not good… at least not compared to what we’ve had from PEI or NZ.
The local’s homemade orange/walnut wine… no pics or commentary required…[Ed. Yes, some commentary is required. You can go to your local decent sized super market and purchase ‘Alcohol for Fruit’ and take it home, add fruit, wait six months, and drink the infused elixir].
A Chocolate dipped cloud of meringue from Bechard on the Cour Mirabeau-one of the most famous patisseries in Aix en Provence. So decadent!
Picking up a sea snail snack in your local Quickie-Mart…probably not a good idea. But highly recommend if you are in a good restaurant.
Not sure if this is cow or pig or goat…Maybe pass this go around and just have a glass of wine? Sounds like an American tourist talking…actually this is the most expensive ham you can buy in the world. It is from Spain. If you see this, absolutely eat it!
Well, this is not food, but we were in a grocery store and Douglas found a huge bottle of Mont St. Michel cologne…Are the monks making this? Do not eat or buy. [Ed. Hot, hot, hot]
I’m sorry but this Marseille fish market pic is kinda scary! I know the fish on the left is squid but is that a surprised eel on the right? I’d probably eat both of them fried…
Still life ‘Fruit Candy’. These sugar bombs are huge and are everywhere. Who eats these types of things?
The dreaded ‘noir sausage’. Usually made with various meats and blood. I think this is a version from Spain… Where is my normal boudin with rice? [Ed. Not in France]
and please do NOT eat an artichoke after it has bloomed!
