La Belle Vie: French coffee culture and France's best restaurants
From ordering coffee in France to explaining the country's north-south divide and preparing for a French dining experience, this week's La Belle Vie newsletter offers you an essential starting point for eating, talking, drinking and living like a French person.
La Belle Vie is our regular look at the real culture of France – from language to cuisine, manners to films. This newsletter is published weekly and you can receive it directly to your inbox, by going to your newsletter preferences in “My account”.
France's new Michelin guide is out, and it has some feeling happier than others.
Often praised as the world's best chef, Guy Savoy saw his restaurant drop down two stars in the latest ranking. However, there are something people have been rejoicing: the new étoile verte (green star) category. A coveted and rare label introduced by the Michelin Guide in 2020, the étoile verte (green star) is given to restaurants who offer "dining experiences that combine culinary excellence with outstanding eco-friendly commitments."
Whether you are looking to celebrate a special occasion or simply wine and dine in style, The Local has put together a list of five restaurants that are on this new eco-friendly guide.
5 eco-friendly French restaurants from the new Michelin guide
The restaurants listed above are from several different parts of France. One of the benefits to the Michelin Guide is that it is not Paris-centric - you can find high-quality restaurants across the country.
But in the land of ‘haute-cuisine’, there are some regional rivalries over who has the best food to offer. Oftentimes, it comes down to the debate over butter versus olive oil for cooking, which is just one of the many facets of France's (fictional) north-south border.
If you’ve ever wondered why French people seem to love moaning about their northern/southern counterparts, these light-hearted maps might help to shed some light on the matter.
8 maps that explain France’s north-south divide
While France is normally known for its delicious gastronomy and fresh food, there are some dishes that can be a bit more challenging for foreigners to stomach. Personally, I am not a fan of boudin noir (blood sausage), but I love escargots (snails).
Readers of The Local gave their takes on their least favourite French foods, and contrary to the stereotypes, frogs' legs did not make it onto the final list.
Readers reveal: The worst food in France
I have to be honest - sometimes all I crave is a simple drip coffee. I don't mind espresso, and honestly if I have trouble waking up in the morning I'll gladly opt for any product derived from coffee beans. Nevertheless, I still find myself missing classic diner-style drip coffee more often than I would like to admit.
On top of that, coffee-drinking in France also has some unexpected rules attached to it, and café culture is notably different from in the United States. When I first moved to France, I experienced one of these surprising coffee-related cultural differences after being served coffee in a bowl while travelling in rural France.
Whether you find yourself integrating easily into French coffee culture, or maybe you still find yourself dreaming of a highly-caffeinated, fancy hipster-style filter coffee, you might still want to be aware of some French coffee rules.
How to drink your coffee in the French style
Once you've learned the rules related to coffee-drinking in France, and you know the basic vocab, you'll need to nail down your go-to method of ordering coffee.
You might be surprised to learn that there are several different variations of how to order your favourite caffeinated beverage, and each has the potential to leave a slightly different impression on your server.
What does the way you order a coffee in French say about you?
Finally, one social media user took to Twitter to tell the world that they tried to order an oat milk latte in Paris, only to have their waiter say "no".
I’m in Paris and I ordered an oat milk latte and the waiter said no.
— Andy Haynes (@imandyhaynes) October 16, 2022
This begs the question - what is French customer service actually like? In my own experience, I have never been expressly told that I cannot order something, but I have been encouraged by wait-staff to pick the plat du jour or whatever other menu item they find most appealing.
Personally, I tend to welcome the advice (it usually pays off taste-wise), but if you have a very specific order in mind and you want to be sure to get what you want, then The Local has put together some information you ought to know when ordering at French restaurants and cafés.
FACTCHECK: Do French waiters really tell customers what they can order?
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La Belle Vie is our regular look at the real culture of France – from language to cuisine, manners to films. This newsletter is published weekly and you can receive it directly to your inbox, by going to your newsletter preferences in “My account”.
France's new Michelin guide is out, and it has some feeling happier than others.
Often praised as the world's best chef, Guy Savoy saw his restaurant drop down two stars in the latest ranking. However, there are something people have been rejoicing: the new étoile verte (green star) category. A coveted and rare label introduced by the Michelin Guide in 2020, the étoile verte (green star) is given to restaurants who offer "dining experiences that combine culinary excellence with outstanding eco-friendly commitments."
Whether you are looking to celebrate a special occasion or simply wine and dine in style, The Local has put together a list of five restaurants that are on this new eco-friendly guide.
5 eco-friendly French restaurants from the new Michelin guide
The restaurants listed above are from several different parts of France. One of the benefits to the Michelin Guide is that it is not Paris-centric - you can find high-quality restaurants across the country.
But in the land of ‘haute-cuisine’, there are some regional rivalries over who has the best food to offer. Oftentimes, it comes down to the debate over butter versus olive oil for cooking, which is just one of the many facets of France's (fictional) north-south border.
If you’ve ever wondered why French people seem to love moaning about their northern/southern counterparts, these light-hearted maps might help to shed some light on the matter.
8 maps that explain France’s north-south divide
While France is normally known for its delicious gastronomy and fresh food, there are some dishes that can be a bit more challenging for foreigners to stomach. Personally, I am not a fan of boudin noir (blood sausage), but I love escargots (snails).
Readers of The Local gave their takes on their least favourite French foods, and contrary to the stereotypes, frogs' legs did not make it onto the final list.
Readers reveal: The worst food in France
I have to be honest - sometimes all I crave is a simple drip coffee. I don't mind espresso, and honestly if I have trouble waking up in the morning I'll gladly opt for any product derived from coffee beans. Nevertheless, I still find myself missing classic diner-style drip coffee more often than I would like to admit.
On top of that, coffee-drinking in France also has some unexpected rules attached to it, and café culture is notably different from in the United States. When I first moved to France, I experienced one of these surprising coffee-related cultural differences after being served coffee in a bowl while travelling in rural France.
Whether you find yourself integrating easily into French coffee culture, or maybe you still find yourself dreaming of a highly-caffeinated, fancy hipster-style filter coffee, you might still want to be aware of some French coffee rules.
How to drink your coffee in the French style
Once you've learned the rules related to coffee-drinking in France, and you know the basic vocab, you'll need to nail down your go-to method of ordering coffee.
You might be surprised to learn that there are several different variations of how to order your favourite caffeinated beverage, and each has the potential to leave a slightly different impression on your server.
What does the way you order a coffee in French say about you?
Finally, one social media user took to Twitter to tell the world that they tried to order an oat milk latte in Paris, only to have their waiter say "no".
I’m in Paris and I ordered an oat milk latte and the waiter said no.
— Andy Haynes (@imandyhaynes) October 16, 2022
This begs the question - what is French customer service actually like? In my own experience, I have never been expressly told that I cannot order something, but I have been encouraged by wait-staff to pick the plat du jour or whatever other menu item they find most appealing.
Personally, I tend to welcome the advice (it usually pays off taste-wise), but if you have a very specific order in mind and you want to be sure to get what you want, then The Local has put together some information you ought to know when ordering at French restaurants and cafés.
FACTCHECK: Do French waiters really tell customers what they can order?
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