Salut c’est Géraldine.
Welcome to Comme une Française TV: live in
France, feel at home.
When invited for a meal in France, don’t
expect to be received in a Versailles dining
room with silver cutlery and porcelain plates.
Nope.
We are normal people.
BUT we have plenty of unwritten rules for
the table.
We call all these rules “l’étiquette”.
How to behave in France at the table, that’s
what we’ll be looking at today on Comme
une Française TV.
Today on CUFTV, we’ll cover “les bonnes
manières” (good maners) : how to show you
are “bien élevé” (well brought-up) in
France.
And avoid any dreaded faux-pas !
1. Keep your hands on the table
Always keep your hands where people can see
them.
When you’re not eating or doing something
else with them, they stay on the table.
2. Le pain
La baguette is usually cut in slices and put
in “une corbeille à pain”.
If you want more bread : At home say : “Tu
me passes un bout de pain s’il te plaît
?” and the person will pass you a piece
of bread When you’re not at home, say:
“Pourriez-vous me passer le pain s’il vous plaît ?” and
the person will pass the corbeille which you’ll
pick a slice from.
Sometimes, the bread is not in slices and
you must cut one yourself with “un couteau à pain”.
At home, you can use your piece of bread to
“saucer” : wipe the sauce from your plate.
3. Le fromage
Ah…
Le fromage.
Help yourself and pass “le plateau de fromages”
or “le couteau à fromage” to your neighbour.
The thing about the cheese course is “It’s
a cheese tasting” not a matter of “I want
to eat and be full”.
A quick tip: If you’re planning on really
enjoying cheese, try to learn the cheese names.
A naughty little tip: If you want to get a
black look from your host, ask this for every
cheese: “Is this Brie?”
PLEASE.
Brie isn’t the only cheese we have in France.
4. Compliment your hosts
Food was prepared with love, time and money
so acknowledge the effort of your hosts by
complimenting them.
You can say : “c’est délicieux” (it
was delicious) or “C’est très bon, merci”
(it was very good, thanks)
5. Taste everything as it is
Taste everything.
It would be VERY rude to refuse food your
host has prepared for you without even tasting it.
This applies to children sitting at the table
as well.
We always tell them “goûte” : “taste”.
If you have allergies or foods you can’t
eat, let your host know in advance.
For example: It would be extremely inappropriate
to refuse meat because you’re a vegetarian
but didn’t tell anyone before.
Or worse: to ask for something else.
Also, don’t add salt or pepper to food you
haven’t yet tasted.
That implies you assume your host is not a
good cook.
As a general rule, don’t add salt or pepper
unless instructed by your host and, of course,
don’t ask for sauces such as ketchup, mustard,
mayonnaise etc.
That would be seen as very inappropriate and
childish.
Et toi ?
Your French will ONLY improve if you put into
practice what you’ve learnt on Comme une
Française TV.
Share your experiences by leaving a comment
below this video :
Did you know about these rules of etiquette?
Let me know, in French, one anecdote about
table etiquette you’ve experienced in France.
The comment section is the best place to start
discussions and ask questions!
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Merci for watching Comme une Française TV:
Live in France, feel at home. Allez, Salut!
