Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
portions, did not catch on in Paris, although many people are
nonetheless eating lighter foods and smaller portions. This
is partly because the portions served were usually already
smaller than in restaurants elsewhere, especially in North
America.
Cuisine de terroir
, which is currently popular, offers
dishes in larger portions than
nouvelle cuisine
and combines
regional ingredients with more traditional recipes. 'Slow
food' offers leisurely meals that respect both the ecology
and culinary traditions of the region and has its
passionnés
(fans) in Paris.
Many restaurants cater to the desire for lighter foods by
cooking with olive oil rather than butter and cream. They are
also experimenting with dishes to suit the tastes and budgets
of a younger generation that is not willing to spend
100
on one meal, a younger set that tends to frequent the more
casual
brasseries
and bistros, wine bars, tearooms, and the
inexpensive Asian restaurants. Fish restaurants and bistros
are also increasingly attractive to people concerned about
health and fitness. (Fish is freshest on Friday and some fish
restaurants are closed on Monday.)
Paris has many restaurants offering the cuisines from
the different regions of France or
cuisine de province
/
cuisine
régionale
. These vary in quality and price, but it is possible
to sample all the cuisines of France without leaving Paris,
for example, the sausage and sauerkraut dishes of Alsace,
tomato- and olive oil-based dishes of Provence, pork dishes
from Lyon, cheese dishes from Savoy or the creamy specialties
of Normandy.
Cuisine bonne femme
means home-cooked
food, and a dish labelled '
maison
' means that it is a specialty
prepared in-house.
€
THE MENU
First, note that in a restaurant, you will be brought
la carte
(the menu). Ordering
à la carte
, that is, from the standard
carte
is the most expensive way to dine, so it's best to check
out the day's
menu
. In a French restaurant,
le menu
does not
refer to the 'menu' as we understand it in English, that is,
the list of offerings, but to a set meal of two or three courses.
Restaurants of all calibres offer a
menu
(also called the
formule
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