French
facile à boire 容易入口
Drinking
Avec des glaçons: On the rocks
La bière: Beer
Une bouteille: A bottle
Le café: Coffee (typically Espresso)
Une crafe: A glass bottle (usually of wine)
La carte de vins: The wine list
Le cidre: Cider
Le jus: Juice
Le Kir: White wine with cassis or blackberry syrup
Un pichet: A small pitcher (usually of wine)
Things that are potentially disgusting (but are usually delicious)
Les cuisses de grenouille: Frogs’ legs
Les escargots: Snails served in-shell with garlic-parsley butter
Le foie: Liver
Le pâté: Liver mousse
Le steak tartare: Seasoned, finely chopped raw beef
Les rognons de veaux: Veal kidneys
La tête de veau: Veal head
Know your meat
À point: Medium rare
Bien cuit: Well done
Bleu, saignant: Rare (“blue” or “bleeding”)
Le bifteck: Steak
À la broche: Cooked on a skewer
Carbonnisée: Burned to a crisp
La charcuterie: An assortment of cured and dried meats
Le porc: Pork
Une saucisse/Saucisson: Sausage
Une tranche: A slice
Le veau: Veal
La viande: Meat
All about chicken:
Les ailes de poulet: Chicken wings
Le blanc de poulet: Chicken breast
Le consommé du volaille: Chicken broth
Le coquelet: Young male chicken
La cuisse: Dark meat
La poulard: Young female chicken
Le poulet/poule: Chicken
Le poulet rôti: Roast chicken
La volaille: White meat
Great dishes
Aïoli: Garlic mayonnaise *try it on fries
Aligot: Fondue-like mix of mashed potatoes and sharp cheese
Le cassoulet: Rich meat and bean casserole
La choucroute: Sauerkraut (expect various kinds of pork)
Le coq au vin: Chicken in red wine sauce
La crêpe: A very thin pancake, sweet or savory
La galette: A savory crepe
Les huitres: Oysters
Le parmentier: Like shephard’s pie, ground meat covered with mashed potatoes
Les moules: Mussels
Le vol-au-vent: A small, light, savory pastry
Menu Mainstays
L’amuse-bouche: A bite-sized hors d’oeuvre, compliments of the chef
Le beurre: Butter
Les coquilles Saint-Jacques: Scallops
Les oeufs: Eggs
Le pain: Bread
Les pâtes: Pasta
How’s it cooked?
Au gratin: Baked with cheese and breadcrumbs
À votre goût: To your liking
En cocotte: Cooked in a covered baking dish
Confit: Cooked in fat (either its own or the fat of something else)
En croute: Wrapped in pastry
Farci: Stuffed
Frit(e): Fried
Fumé: Smoked
Haché: Ground (meat)
Un méli-mélo: An assortment
Un morceau: A piece
Piquant: Spicy
Au pistou: With basil
Provençal: Cooked with tomatoes, anchovies and olives
Rôti: Roasted
À la vapeur: Steamed
Good to know
L’addition: The check (must be requested)
Allérgique à: Allergic to
And for the Mrs./Miss: Et pour la madame/mademoiselle…
L’assiette: Plate
La carte/le ménu: The menu
Les champignons: Mushrooms
Compris/Inclus: Included
Le cornichon: The tiniest pickle you’ve ever seen, accompanies charcuterie
La cuisine: The kitchen
La dégustation: Tasting menu
Le déjeuner: Lunch
Délicieux: Delicious
Le dîner: Dinner
Du jour: Of the day
Le fromage: Cheese
Garçon: What NOT to call the waiter, no matter how many times you’ve seen it in movies. Instead, signal the waiter with “Monsieur/Madame/Mademoiselle, s’il vous plait.”
Je voudrais: I would like…
Le petit déjeuner: Breakfast
Le poisson: Fish
Les pommes de terre: Potatoes
Le pourboire: Tip (basic gratuity is almost always included in French restaurants, listed as servis compris)
Le serveur/la serveuse: Waiter/waitress
Végétarien: Vegetarian
Végétalien: Vegan