French cuisine is genuinely as good as its reputation suggests, and the regional variety is remarkable. What you eat in Alsace bears almost no resemblance to what you eat in Provence or Brittany. The country has a serious food culture — markets, producers, and mealtimes are treated with real respect.
A few things to know: lunch is the main meal in many regions, and a prix-fixe lunch menu (formule or menu du jour) at a proper restaurant is often excellent value — three courses for €12–18 is not unusual outside Paris. Dinner is taken late, rarely before 7:30pm. Eating at off-hours is difficult outside tourist areas.
Regional Specialities
Alsace is famous for choucroute (sauerkraut with cured meats and sausages), tarte flambée (a thin crispy flatbread with fromage blanc, onion, and lardons), and Munster cheese. The Germanic influence is unmistakable.
Burgundy produces some of the world's most celebrated wines and pairs them with rich dishes: boeuf bourguignon, escargots de Bourgogne, and coq au vin. Dijon's mustard is the best in the world.
Provence and the Riviera favour olive oil, garlic, tomatoes, and fresh herbs. Bouillabaisse — the fish stew of Marseille — is the signature dish. Salade Niçoise (from Nice) is a proper composed salad, not the soggy thing you get abroad. Socca, a chickpea flour pancake, is Nice street food at its finest.
Bretagne (Brittany) is the land of crêpes and galettes (buckwheat crêpes filled with savoury ingredients), excellent oysters and mussels, and salted butter caramel in everything. The dairy is outstanding.
Dordogne and Périgord is truffle and foie gras country — duck confit, magret de canard, and walnut oil on everything. Rich, indulgent, and worth it.
Loire Valley produces excellent chèvre (goat's cheese) and the Tarte Tatin was invented here — an upside-down caramelised apple tart that came about by accident when a hotelier put the apples in the pan before the pastry.
Wine
France produces more wine than any other country and the quality across the regions is extraordinary. Burgundy, Champagne, Bordeaux, the Rhône Valley, Alsace, and the Loire each have distinct styles. Champagne from anywhere other than the Champagne region is just sparkling wine — the French will tell you this firmly.
Ordering house wine (vin de la maison) in a restaurant is not a disgrace; often it's a perfectly decent local wine sold cheaply. In Alsace, drink Riesling and Gewürztraminer with your food.
Cheese
France has hundreds of named cheeses. The diversity between a creamy Brie de Meaux, a pungent Époisses, a sharp Comté, and a crumbly Roquefort illustrates the point better than any description. A good cheesemonger at a market is worth visiting even if you don't buy anything.
Coffee
A café means an espresso. If you want a large milky coffee, ask for a café crème or café au lait (the latter mainly at breakfast). Ordering a "café latte" will get you a look.