Ch 27 · Lesson 26French · Chapter 27 · Lesson 26 · Themed review
Les repas et leurs heures
Lunch at half past twelve and dinner at eight: when the French eat, why the kitchen closes at two, and why breakfast is called lunch in Montreal.
Practise this lesson
18-word session
A quick mix of exercises - recognise, recall, type and build each word. Miss one and it comes back round until it sticks.
Worth knowing
Lunch at half past twelve, and nothing in between
France eats at fixed times, together, and mostly not in between. It is one of the habits that has changed least, and a visitor who does not know the clock ends up hungry.
The French day
| Meal | When | What |
|---|---|---|
| 7h to 8h | light and sweet: bread with butter and jam, a croissant at the weekend, coffee or hot chocolate, often in a bowl |
| 12h to 14h | the main meal for many: a main course with a starter or something sweet (or both), then a coffee |
| about 16h30 | for children after school: bread and chocolate, a biscuit, fruit |
| 19h30 to 20h30 | the family meal, at the table, television off if the parents win |
Before dinner on a Friday or with friends there is often apéro: a drink and something small to eat, which can quietly last until midnight.
The kitchen closes
Outside the big cities, most restaurants serve lunch from about noon to two and dinner from about seven. Arrive at three and you will be offered a coffee and nothing else. It is not rudeness: the cook has gone home.
Eating between meals
Snacking is frowned on more than in Britain, and the word for it, grignoter, is a little disapproving. Children have their ; adults are supposed to wait.
Sunday lunch
The long one. Family, several courses, for the adults, and it can run from one o'clock until the light goes. If you are invited, bring flowers, chocolates or a good bottle, and do not plan anything for the afternoon.
Same words, different meals
| Meal | France | Québec, Belgium, Switzerland |
|---|---|---|
| breakfast | | |
| lunch | | |
| dinner | | |
So in Montreal or Brussels, on à . Agree on the time, not the word, and nobody is left waiting.