Everyday Systems

I just came from a month vacation in France. Noting that overall French are slimmer than Americans - although I did see some fat (not obese) French - Ii asked a few what they ate.

This is more or less a general description:

Breakfast - an expresso coffee

Lunch - a ham and cheese (or other meat) baggette sandwich

Dinner - a soup, a meat with some vegetables

2-3 glasses of wine per day

They walk a lot but not in a predetermined daily quantity. Some younger ones jog.

They smoke a lot.

I forgot to inquire about sweets but did not notice restrictions to nos days. Portions I saw them eat were rather small.

Thus, it seems the French diet is very similar to nos.

I wrote here about the eating habits of the French. Most of this was directed towards how they teach their children to eat, but adult eating habits were mentioned as well.

Most adults don't snack. Sweets may be eaten during the week, but dessert is usually fruit. The only thing that I read that differed from what you said is that the midday meal is the main meal of the day -- children get that meal at school and many businesses have it in their cafeterias. The evening meal then is usually lighter.

They don't have bread or potato at dinner? I thought bread was a staple. I always heard about the bakeries where the people get it fresh for meals.

oolala53 wrote:They don't have bread or potato at dinner? I thought bread was a staple. I always heard about the bakeries where the people get it fresh for meals.

According to the sources I've read, bread is a staple at every meal -- and the children's afternoon snack.

Hi

Just coming back here after a long time away.

I've noticed similar habits in Portugal and in Greece. The people I know in Greece typically eat like this:

Breakfast - nothing, or fresh fruit such as figs from a neighbor's tree

2pm Lunch - a family meal at a table - usually some kind of casserole, baked dish or pie. There is usually salad, bread, feta cheese, olives etc. for people to have on the side. Sometimes there are sweets or ice cream available for dessert, but it's usually just the kids who have those.

10pm - dinner out at a restaurant, similar stuff to lunch but with meat & fish dishes on the menu, usually various salads and veg side dishes to go around.

One thing I've noticed is that although there is plenty of junk in the supermarkets, there don't seem to be many snacking opportunities. People generally stick to meal times (adults anyway, not sure about kids).

One thing that bugs me is the lack of opportunity to get tea or coffee, there are a few cafes but it seems like only men go to them - I expect it is different in bigger towns and cities though. Also, I don't know anyone in the Greek village we go to who actually owns a kettle, it seems they're not used to English visitors!

When I was vacationing on the Aegean I noticed the Turks ate similarly: breakfast was a cheese, bread, and melon.

Lunch: I don't remember

Dinner: a shish, vegetables, etc. I don't recall having snacks or anywhere just to stop and buy one.

wosnes wrote:

oolala53 wrote:They don't have bread or potato at dinner? I thought bread was a staple. I always heard about the bakeries where the people get it fresh for meals.

According to the sources I've read, bread is a staple at every meal -- and the children's afternoon snack.

Indeed. It's on the table. Just like salt and pepper. Period When you ask a French person what they had for their meal, they won't mention bread. It's used to dip in sauce to finish your plate, to accompany cheese, and to push food onto your fork. It's not a dish. (Unless it's mandatory in an association, like "pain beurré" -- bread with butter)

About the children's afternoon snack, it can be either bread, or a viennoiserie ("pain au chocolat" -- which, as it name does not imply, is not bread -- or "croissant") In this case, bread IS a dish (bread with a piece of chocolate, or jam, or Nutella -- and no, we don't know about peanut butter...)

Jethro wrote:I just came from a month vacation in France. Noting that overall French are slimmer than Americans - although I did see some fat (not obese) French - Ii asked a few what they ate.

This is more or less a general description:

Breakfast - an expresso coffee

This is true. Although most French people still favour eating at breakfast, it is less and less the case.

Jethro wrote: Lunch - a ham and cheese (or other meat) baggette sandwich

Were you in Paris? It is commonplace in Paris for working people to go out of office for lunch and buy a sandwich. In other less dense regions, companies often negotiate for their employees access to a shared workplace restaurant, where you can eat more decent meals, served in a real plate with stainless steel fork and knife

Jethro wrote: Dinner - a soup, a meat with some vegetables

That's about right. They probably didn't mention bread, cheese, yoghurt, fruits, that are part of the French meal frame. (although not mandatory, but cultural anyway)

Jethro wrote: 2-3 glasses of wine per day

I could not say if my (broad) family is an exception, but we don't drink wine on a common basis, only whenwe invite friends for dinner, and on special occasions. But I know some families drink wine on a regular basis.

Jethro wrote: They walk a lot but not in a predetermined daily quantity. Some younger ones jog.

Once again, were you in Paris? They have a decent public transport system there. Most people, when moving to Paris for work, have to wonder whether they will sell their car or not. I live and work on the sparse countryside, and I have to drive to and from work. I don't have regular occasions to walk.

Jethro wrote: They smoke a lot.

It may shock you, but teenagers smoke in middle and high school in France. (I mean, in the schoolplace!) They learn to smoke early. But this is changing. More and more laws are enforcing a no-smoking character to public places, and people have less and less places where they are allowed to smoke.

And any teenager can buy a pack of cigarettes in any tobacco shop.

Jethro wrote: I forgot to inquire about sweets but did not notice restrictions to nos days. Portions I saw them eat were rather small.

Yes. Sweets are expensive.

Jethro wrote: Thus, it seems the French diet is very similar to nos.

Yes. What's missing to French people nowadays is the will to resist pressure, and the knowledge that they have a heritage of sane eating habits. We know we have 3 meals. Our parents teach us not to eat sweets before meals. But as soon as we see half a handful of fat on our bellies, we consider ourselves too fat, and have to diet. And everything breaks down from that point on. We put undue pressure on our minds, and snack mindlessly when pressure gets too big.

Messier TUK, my wife and I spent five days in Paris and then went through Normandy, Bourdeaux, etc. and finished at Nice. Form Nice we went to Monaco and back.

I loved the people, the food, the ambiance and the way of life.

All I can say is "I'll be back!" Vive la France

Glad you liked my country From Normandie to Monaco. Boy, that's quite a trip. (Well, OK, it's not Maine to California, but still...)

I love it here too. I too would like to go back to US someday. (I liked Pennsylvania when I was there. Lots of woods.)