Millers Wife Field to the Lemon-Coloured Butter

[CatherineS2]

Believe it or not, the above is supposedly the English translation of  "Sole Meuniere au Beurre Citronné" according to a harbourside seafood restaurant on the Ile de Ré we went to last summer!

See if you can work out what the following are supposed to mean...

1. Slab of tremendous, dip in the sauce to flaps mushrooms

2. Paved of wild roasted bar to the marrow, on reads of ruby

3. Pat of eel-pout, be riled of crabs and Norways lobsters

4. Made flaky fruity of sea

5. Cooked in a frying pan of shrimps make rosy flare-ups

6. The browned part to red fruits

I find it incredible that this kind of thing should still occur - when there are masses of English tourists in the area and the restaurant in question (Le Belem for anyone who has been there) is one of the prime harbourside restaurants, not some tiny back-street café who can't afford to get someone to properly translate for them! They have obviously used some sort of automated internet translation service. I feel sorry for any poor hapless souls who speak no french and are trying to order a meal!!!

To put you out of your misery, here is what they were trying to translate...

1. Pavé de boeuf, sauce aux ceps

2. Pavé de bar sauvage roti a la moelle, sur lit de vin rouge

3. Medaillons de lotte, bisque de crabs et langoustines

4. Feulleté de fruits de mer

5. Poelée de crevettes roses flambées

6. Le gratin aux fruits rouges

[Dick Smith]

There's a place in Ouistreham (so lots of Anglaises on their way to the ferry) which isn't as bad as that, but they INSIST that if you are English you have the English menu...   Total confusion.

[Rob G]

In a similar vein, I am always amazed to find English language adverts or websites belonging to large, reputable French companies, where the English is awful. You would think companies of this size would pay to get a decent translation done.

Rob

[KathyC]

And what about being given a menu in English when the waiting staff don't speak it. Now there's a recipe for confusion!

[Opalienne]

Ages ago we saw the English translation of the menu at the restaurant at the Gare St Charles in Marseille.   I can't remember all of it, but soupe de poissons was translated as No Thames Soup (?????), foie gras avec ses toasts Poor Duck Liver on Toast, and assiette de charcuterie de canard Duck Show on Plate.   We also ate once in a restaurant in the Var where filet de rouget au basilic was Fillet of Goldfish with Basilisk.  But perhaps the most taxing to the imagination was in Spain where rape alla marinara was rendered as Rape Sailor Style.........

[Hoddy]

Here's one I collected in Domme last year - "Coupe des fraises du pays de Domme selon arrivage".

The English version was "Domme's strawberry according as consignment".

Perhaps we should have a competition for this summer's most amusing contribution.

Hoddy

[Punch]

Salade de Gesiers sounds appetising until the French try to translate it in to English !

[Chrisb]

Net of roasted bar singes.................made me think of a load of cooked monkeys!! (meant to be filet of Bass (Bar in French))

Froth (moss)of apple and its knob with toffee in the milk............................Apple and pommeau mousse with a caramel sauce!!

Chris