Do and don't, eating in France
 

It ALMOST makes me want to eat in another country!!!

The only thing JR and I were guilty of was trying to talk to everyone! We totally messed up about the water though. If you are in an outside facility, asking for a pitcher of tap water can be a real PITA for the server.

It's an excellent guide to restaurant etiquette for the first time visitor to Paris, or just about anywhere else in Europe.

A lot of the points are accurate, but some are absolute crap. For example:

<i>DON’T leave small coin change as a tip unless you are in a coffee shop. It is insulting.

Forget all the conflicting tipping information out there… DO leave a 10% tip in cash on the table before leaving if you enjoyed the service.<i>

This absolutely proves that the author knows little about France.

Here are my rules of etiquette for dining in France:

Bring straws and shove them up your nose. If the French think Jerry Lewis is a riot, they will love this.

Tell the sommelier the wine is awful. And when you insist he taste it, tickle him so he will snort it out.

Call everyone garçon, including old women.

Do not be shy and taste other people's food, without asking, when returning from the bathroom. Just take it off their plate. Be sure to ask them for their napkin to wipe your hands. Otherwise it would be rude. This is a very common practice in Paris.

Bring your own butter. Bring it in an insulated bag. Did you think I was going to tell you just to put it in your pocket?

Ask the waiter how much he makes and then tip him accordingly.

Always carry a big pair of pliers, so you can remove a stick from people's a..es whenever necessary.

I thought there were some good points particularly about having realistic expectations.

Big Al, Big LOL!

Thanks for posting this, cigale. Guilty as charged for requestng milk for my espresso - can't drink it otherwise and I can't say any waiter has snorted in disgust. I quite enjoy eating in Paris: love the formality and professional attitude of the waitstaff and the ambience of the restaurateur's "home."

well the link has been broken and replaced which was a bit of a pain, still good that they explained Paris is in France :-0

but I struggled through and discovered a long, long piece (my goodness was he paid by the word) and containing somenonsense, his details on wine was insulting, the tip info was just wrong and neighbours on other tables do not act behind glass screens and at least nod or say hello.

I've subscribed...oy....if I was only 40 years younger..those chefs!!

I liked the article...I will like more.

"DO understand that the French DON’T treat a meal like a social happy hour – out to make friends with total strangers at the next table. The minute they sit down, imaginary walls go up around their table to keep their meal private and you should do the same".

The next time someone in France asks me if I am American and do I speak French, I shall remind them.

((I))

Thanks Cath.

My sister-in-law, although well traveled in Spain and Italy, had never visited France until last year. She was intimidated by the stories regarding the French and was traveling alone. She went a moderately priced restaurant and when she saw two women of a certain whom she assumed were French, she just ordered everything they did and did every thing they did and hoped no one noticed.

While I am reasonably well behaved in restaurants, I have perfected the "Bonjour" in that sing-songy Julia Child voice whenever I enter a retail establishment, even though I am a man.

That was my friend and I your sister was copying. Fail.

well, who knew that the rules for french bistros and restaurants were so different?

I've been eating in both for years and have managed very well without this nugget of information.

much of this is obvious and some of it seems plain daft. I've never found dining in France that different from dining elsewhere. Except that generally the food's better.

I remember my first time in Paris, a young woman from Boston who was accustomed to picking up merchandise to see the sleeve length or whatever and was scolded. I thought she was nasty until , later friends told me I was supposed to ask to see the item.

Sorry - but I agree about the not being best friends with th e folks at the next table.

The same is true in NYC. You both happen to be dining in the same spot. so what? No need to commend or converse. Tables are close enough together - give people some privacy.

This is the same rule as not meeting people's eye in the subway (or Metro there). It's just polite. And much safer.

That was my friend and I your sister was copying. Fail.
____
Were you copying my SIL because you thought she knew what she doing?
____

I liked some of what was said in the article ( the point that the restaurant is like the chefs home and his staff are family) but sorry , totally disagree about the tipping.. if I had a great experience in a nice restaurant I would feel fine leaving 5% , if I am in a café I am leaving coins, and if I just thought it was so so , I leave nothing with no guilt whatsoever..
When I read the authors take on tipping it made me not trust him much ... hes obviously coming from another point of view, and I don't think in this case anyways, that its the same as the average locals.

And btw, Amex cards are not taken in a lot of places in Europe, and guess what, my shop in Victoria BC does not take them either!! Visa is I think the most widely accepted cc in the world.

Amex cards charge too much for the small restaurants to survive. That's why they don't accept them.

Interesting up until the comments about tipping. If this author had any credibility, it ended with the 10% tip suggestion. Only someone completely unaware would purpose such such nonsense.

All in all, a generic article with generic answers, many of which have no basis in reality.

For me, a waste of time to read. That's shame on me.

"Guilty as charged for requestng milk for my espresso"

If you don't want a big cafe au lait, order a 'noisette'; small coffee with milk. I don't like coffee without milk, this is what I order after a meal.

Like almost everyone on these boards I have been to many countries, and few are as intractable and intolerant and like to stick up your nose as the Parisians. We go for the inaminate objects.

Well, Amex is solely an American CC, I imagine that's probably the main reason places don't accept them. A lot of places in the US don't take them, either, they get plenty of business just taking Visa and MC. I've never heard that they charge "astronomical fee" as she stated, only 1-4 pct more than other cards, although it just probably isn't worth the trouble to do it for American business only (and more paperwork). It would be odd to expect them to take Amex, although bigger stores do take it in Europe, like FNAC in Paris. This blog is written for kind of jerky American tourists, I guess (why would you expect to use Amex).

This is another blog by some American or British expat trying to make money about writing articles for people who don't know Paris very well. The internet is full of them for some reason, I guess it is the Paris mystique. I thought some or most of the comments were fine, but they are mostly common sense and how to behave in general. There was one other woman who used to do this, maybe still does, who I used to respect until she wrote something ridiculous in one article about how croissants in Paris cost 7 euro or something like that. So I think that idea that you should always tip 10 pct is along the same line -- the author probably knows it isn't true but is distorting things for some reason, or else just lives in a very unusual world of people or places, which could be. I think it is arrogant for her (an expat from the American south) so proclaim that you should forget everything you've read about tipping in Paris, and just believe her and do what she says which is you should always tip 10 pct.

Here is another blog by someone she copied, kind of (she clearly knows of him having done an interview with him ) and he says something completely different on tipping, which is more accurate http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2007/04/tipping-in-fran-1/

The reason that Amex is not popular is because they take 3.5% commission in France. Visa and MasterCard take only 0.50-0.75% commission.

A question for Kerouac and others who are based in France; do you agree with the blogger that you should not order Rose wine with dinner? I see plenty of French people drinking Rose during a meal in the south of France in summer.

I liked "do take photos of your food quickly" well only if you are children and you haven't moved onto solid food yet. :-)

I often order rosé with light meals year-round. I especially like it with an entrée-sized salade de chèvre chaud.

Like all wines, rosés can be very dry or cloyingly sweet.

I've never heard it should not be drunk with a meal. However, I live in the French boondocks. Maybe rosé with a meal is not considered chic in Paris.

Most restaurants here in the boondocks offer house red and rosé by the glass and carafe. Rarely white. White is often only offered by the bottle.

<i>Amex is solely an American CC</i>

Amex cards are issued globally including in France.

RE: "DO “signal” the server that you are finished eating by placing the silverware side by side & face-up on the plate. They will not take your plates until this signal tells them to."

I was taught "tines down" to signal completion ~ have I been doing it incorrectly for all these years?

I order rosé whenever I want it. Oddly enough, it is considered to be the standard wine to order in a Chinese restaurant.

In recent years, rosé has become the #2 wine in France after red. White wine has dropped to third place, even in the winter, because rosé has also become "the" wine to drink in ski resorts.

Phew, glad I can continue to enjoy Minuty Rose with my lunch on the beach without being ridiculed by the waiter :-)

kerouac - have you ever tried campari and soda with chinese food? it's excellent!

I have been drinking mostly Rose this trip which is something new for me. Haven't had a problem so far in fact several waiters have recommended it.

Schnauzer

In the south of France, rosé wines are very popular. Some of the best rosés come from the Rhône region (Tavel comes to mind) or from Languedoc. Typically in the warmer souther regions, rosés may occupy almost as much grocery shelf space as do the reds.

I hesitate somewhat in offering my own set of rules for dinning in Paris as a local but what the heck, here they are:

http://lejeudeboules.com/2009/05/04/19/

One of the things that draws a lot of people -- including the French -- to rosé when the weather is hot is that it is totally acceptable for it to be served ice cold. But in recent years, there are quite a few wines, including reds and whites, which people like to drink chilled.

OK...the article is crap. I ENJOY Rose's .. a lot. One of my wine shops carried a truly delicious Greek Rose! Pretty darned dry but that is what I prefer.

The website though is interesting - the interviews with chefs, etc.

Aah, cut my teeth on Lancers Rose, interesting to know it's back. Breezed through above, to the one who posed the question, don't expect icewater or much ice ever, or expect butter w/ baguette at dinner. The bread is great plain, save the calories for dessert. Just had discussion today w/ my hairdresser who made first overseas trip to Berlin; she was perfectly happy without the incessant chit-chat that American waitstaff seem to be trained to perform. Expect courtesy but don't expect to make friends w/ your waiter or those at next table. I shall always treasure lunching at the Grand Vefour where we were seated at Collette's favorite table. The waitstaff was outstanding and anticipated our every wish-- they were proud professionals and we were happy to have them. No, it was a one-time treat, and worth every euro.

sarastro - that's more like it.

very useful I should think to those who are new to eating in France, and well written too.

Bravo!

Quite an article...and some excellent responses to it. Merci.