French Café Classics
 

I'd love some food and drink suggestions of things that you enjoy when in a café. I'd like to stay away from the American brand soda with one ice cube. I can have that at home. I have tried Orangina soda and love it and I prefer still water over sparkling.

Some suggestions for the adventurous?

hot grog.

and menthe a l'eau - sweet mint drink mixed with water.

Hi Moldy!
I got into the habit this past March, of having a Kir every afternoon at the cafe across from our apt.
Sometimes we would stop in various cafes late in the afternoon and I would have a hot chocolate and pastry.
My fave cafe lunch is a Croque Madame and either coffee or Vitelle.

I love a kir-- crème de cassis and white wine. I prefer this to kir royale, with champagne, but either is great.

I also love Lemon Fanta, which I have seen in some but not all European countries, but not in the US.

Wow! So many quick replies. Thanks for helping me break out of my soda drinking shell!

I like a Lillet blanc (made in the Gironde area)as an aperitif, but not every place in France has it, which surprised me.

If you were really adventurous, you'd just choose something from the menu, even if you didn't know what it is.

grandmere, we drink Lillet Rouge here at home but I cannot find it in Blanc :(

Hi M,

Limonade soda with Creme de Menth

Pastis: Pernod or Ricard are widely available. It should come as a yellow liquid in a tall glass with a pitcher of cold water. You put some water in the liquor to taste. It turns white.

Very licorice.

((I))

Scarlett, we can get Lillet Blanc at a couple of our liquor stores in Halifax, Nova Scotia. I still haven't gotten over the happy shock of discovering it there.

Anselm

>>Author: Christina
Date: 06/06/2005, 02:10 pm
If you were really adventurous, you'd just choose something from the menu, even if you didn't know what it is.<<

Touché!

I'm adventurous but have limited time and financial resources.

Scarlett,

I also love Lillet, and have only ever had blanc. I can get it at my local grocery, but never new how lucky I was! Do you have New Seasons market near you? It's a wild oats chain.

Lillet Blanc is available at Beverages and More (aka Bevmo) in CA.

Anselm, then I guess we have to make a quick visit to Halifax!
:)
I am in the wilds of North Florida at the moment and one gourmet grocery has Lillet Rouge and I am counting myself lucky for that much!
Thank you, I am sure in Portland we will have more to choose from ((D))

Good suggestions--I like Lillet and kirs (royale or common) and eau a la menthe.

In cold weather, vin chaud (hot wine) with a cinnamon stick. In hot weather, citron presse (lemonade).

Also to add to the list of alcoholic beverages, I like drinking any of the muscats from various appellations (Beaumes de Venise, Rivesaultes, Lunel) as an aperitif.

Occasionally our larger liquor stores carry Lillet, and a couple of restaurants here in the 'Burgh serve it. But I was surprised to have a couple servers look at me strangely when I ordered it in France--once in Normandy, and once in Paris. Incroyable!

I prefer the blanc to the rouge.

I like a Suze in all seasons, also a Pineau but usually a pastis in summer.
Scarlett, you can order a white lillet on line

P.S. my favorite pastis in Henri Bardouin and second, Pastis 51.

And actually, the white is easier to find here; and you experience the opposite, Scarlett? We must all go to France and stock up!

LOL!

We seem to have turned this into a "help Scarlett find Lillet in America" thread!

Sorry Moldy!

Gramere- Great idea- If we must, we must.

BTW Scarlett, are you coming to Portland soon? Weren't you here last fall? Not that it isn't a lovey enough place to visit in all seasons!

Yes, Thank you and Sorry Moldy!
We should all go to Paris soon and do some shopping!

Yes, we are visiting Portland in a week or two then we will be moving there, the first week in August :D

Now back to <b>French Cafe Classics!</b>

Sorry for the mispelling Grandmere. My grandmother always writes &quot;Grama&quot; because that is what I used to call her as a child, so I guess I am just used to spelling it wrong.

What is hot grog?!

I like to drink &quot;bitter lemon&quot; in England, and I think I remember having it in Paris. It's a tart, not too sweet lemon soda.

Oh, and all apologies accepted. :)

I'm surprised to see that no one has mentioned a drink that friends ordered while we were travelling. I was positively repulsed by it! A Monaco is part beer, part lemon-lime soda and grenadine. I guess I was right with my impression of it!

Without the grenadine, that would be a 'Shandy'.

It's definitely kir royale...cassis and champagne and at the Cafe Flore on Blvd. St.Germain in the 6th district!Their kir royale is as smooth as silk. Happy Travels!

Absolutely loved the citron and orange presses especially when I felt hot and icky. After my thirst was quenched, it was back to Kir Royales.

Picon with white wine or beer (my husband prefers the beer version)
Pousse Rapiere mixed with white wine
the a la menthe fraiche
Pineau de Charentes

I'm looking forward to drinking a nice Belgian or Alsatian beer while in Paris b/c (I know this is sacrilege) I'm not a big wine drinker. Are there any beer drinkers out there and, if so, any recommendations? I really like Belgian Leffe. Is this commonly available at cafes? On tap or in bottles?

Kate

Kronenbourg is made in Alsace and is considered to be a good beer. Lots of advertisements over there for Stella Artois, but not sure where it is made. Quick Google should do it!

Indygirl,
My daughter has had some Cherry Beer in Belgium this past week, she wants to bring it home for us to try!
Cherry beer?

I'm a fan of the presse's as well

Then a cool white wine in a clay pichet (?), one of those heavy wine glasses and a little dish of olives.
Sigh....

Since I have never been able to add enough sugar to a citron presse to make it drinkable, I discovered a pamplemousse presse at Cafe Bonaparte last time I was there. Delicious!

&gt;&gt;Author: BTilke
Date: 06/07/2005, 10:38 am
Picon with white wine or beer (my husband prefers the beer version)
Pousse Rapiere mixed with white wine
the a la menthe fraiche
Pineau de Charentes&lt;&lt;

The only one in the list that I know is the mint tea. Is someone able to describe the other items?

Picon -- wow I haven't had that in years...it is sort of like Campari only sweeter. You mix it with soda or sparkling water or wine or beer (hmmm sounds interesting!) Kind of in the same class as Pimm's cup, also...

Pineau des Charentes is an apertif of Cognac and grape juice, from the Cognac region. Fruity and dry and is unusual in apertifs in having an Appellation Controllee. I learned this from a poster here called cigale.

Hi, machin, hope your wife is better :)
You described pineau very well.
Picon is a gention based digestif like my favorite apertif, suze.
I have not seen it sold here.The Pousse Repiere is from the Ger area and is an armagnec topped with the local sparkling wine called a vin sauvage supposedly to to give strength to a swordsman to withdraw his blade after he had spitted his opponent. A strong drink,!!!