Structure of French Cuisine Meals
Dejeuner
For French cuisine, there are three meals involved. The breakfast,
known as le petit dejeuner, is usually a quick and light meal. Slices of
buttered French bread, croissants, and coffee or tea are the traditional
French food and drinks during the breakfast. Hot chocolate is also often
drunk by children during breakfast. Cafes already open during the early
hours in the morning also serve different variations of breakfast meals.
Because the breakfast is taken before going to school or work, this meal
is usually taken for granted and is deemed insignificant.
Le Dejeuner
The second meal, or the lunch, is known as le dejeuner. Before, the
lunch usually takes two hours during the middle part of the day but some
people take their lunches for only an hour. During Sundays, lunches take
a longer time and are usually an opportunity to get together with the
rest of the family. French restaurants usually serve lunch from 12:00
noon to 2:30 in the afternoon. During the lunch, three French food
recipes are served: entrée, plat, and fromage or dessert. For people on
the run, a heavy sandwich may be sufficient as lunch. These sandwiches
which take the place of a three-course lunch meal can be bought from
supermarkets and bakeshops at low rates.
In urban areas where majority belong to either the working population
or the schooling population, eating lunch at a cafeteria is common.
Students also often bring their own lunch dishes. In some companies,
lunch vouchers are also provided as employee benefits for white-collar
workers.
Le Diner
The last meal for the day is the dinner, or the le diner. There are
still three courses included in this meal, similar to lunch meals. The
most common desserts during dinners are cheese, yoghurt,
salads, or
fresh fruits. Bread, wine and water are also served during dinner. Fruit
juice can also replace wine as drinks during dinner. Vegetables and rice
or pasta are often served with the main meat dishes. Dinner is usually
served in restaurants from 7:30 in the evening until 10:00 in the
evening.
The dinner is usually considered as the most important meal in the
French cuisine. Since the parents are working while the children are in
school, the dinner is the only opportunity for the family to dine
together. This meal is also considered as a reward after a day filled
with work and stress.
Among the French, wine and food go together. Wine consumption is
already a significant parcel of the culture in France. But, as time
passed by, lesser and lesser people often drink wine. Low-quality wines
became popular, as well. These alcoholic drinks include cider and
homemade beer.
French below 18 years of age are not allowed to drink wines and
alcoholic drinks, as promulgated by the legal rules and provisions in
France. |
