A New Life in the Sun

[idun]

I have been watching it this week on channel 4.

A couple are opening gite'y type things in the Tarn area and a lady is opening a bar in Villefrance sur Mer (in an area of France I really do like).

The gite couple seemed to speak reasonable french on the first episode, and yet, there they were with family having a toast saying ' Viva la France' several times.

Now maybe french has changed somewhat since I left, but do people now say 'viva' instead of 'Vive la France'?

Also, whilst carving a well cooked of roast lamb to be served with carrots, roast potatoes and broccoli, they were saying that they would offer meals on Mondays to paying guests and would serve french fayre. This meal being served to their family, as an example.

Well cooked leg of lamb, never had it served to me by any french friend or in a restaurant, always pink and full of garlic and rosemary.........nor  have I had an english type roast dinner in France either.

I love a roast dinner, of any sort, but I am english and brought up with it.

But, just who does anyone opening such a place have as a target market, because the french people I know would find being served such things IN FRANCE as being very 'odd' to say the least. OR do people open these places with the goal of simply getting brits to come?????

Did not hear the lady in Villefrance speak a word of french as yet, all the french were speaking english, but maybe that was for the cameras??

[woolybanana]

Experience will teach them, doudoune. At least they are having a go at their dream and not sittng whinging.

[Alan Zoff]

One person's dream is another's nightmare. Some of the people on these programmes are just the sort of nightmares from which I prefer to escape. But each to his or her own, of course.

[mogs]

Our daughter was always getting French friends around on a Sunday as they had especially requested to try an English roast dinner. They mostly loved it although some found it odd to have meat, veg and potatoes on the same plate. Nevertheless their plates were cleared.

[idun]

 I used to do roast dinners for french friends. They knew what they were getting........ something typiquement anglais.

In fact they usually enjoyed the 'strange' food I made, but they were not on holiday in France, where I would have truly thought that french people would expect french food.

And the people said that they would do french food, but I have yet to see them do just that. Still I do wonder what market people aim for........ british, ignoring 60 million french people, or not??

A B&B owner on Four in a Bed tonight,  said that they provided a 'french' hot cooked breakfast, in Blackpool, eggy bread and bacon apparently........ didn't look like any pain perdue I have ever seen, and we have only known that to be offered, a sweet version, for a gouter....... but France is a big country and someone might tell me differently.

[mogs]

Just wondering as I missed it. Why did the man friend of the woman who had a bar in France not appear for around 3 months? Were they a couple and split up?

Just to add that he did appear at the end of the programme again.

[Théière]

I thought it was ok to serve meat and veg on the same plate provided they were not touching each other?

[woolybanana]

That is only in extreme Muslim countries. If they do touch they get whipped!

[idun]

Business partners...........and that is why I HATE THE WORD PARTNER. Either someone is someone's companion, boy friend/girl friend, but partner....... give me a break!

People go on about americanisms and this I HATE far more, it means NOTHING, and in this case confusing.

Re the program, the lady had wanted this bar for years and this bloke said he would back her financially and help initially, but the rest was down to her. So he left her to it.

And I know french people who serve each bit of food individually, ie the meat and the veg are never on the same serving. Others when they serve veg with the meat, only serve one veg.

And when french friends first saw my roast dinner,  smiled and said, assiette anglaise, because, everything is on the same plate.

Our french friends were local as well as from Brittany, Normandie, Lyon, Lille and Auvergne. None served up a load of veg with their meals, but that is not all of France, so maybe some regions do?

[NickP]

woolyb wrote:

"That is only in extreme Muslim countries. If they do touch they get whipped!"

I loved your very funny comment woolyb, I think though you are very brave, as I would imagine the "can't wait to get up in the morning and be offended mob" will be rallying. I also wish we had an agree or disagree button on this forum. LOL

[PaulT]

Oh dear, dear, dear Idun:

'Program'

It is accepted in the case of a computer 'program' in English English but in connection to TV etc then it is programme and program in American English

[idun]

As a bit of a dyslexic person, it is a wonder that you got a word you could recognise at all.

I try, but like my accent in french, it is a bit of a loosing battle![Www][:D]

[lindal1000]

Don't know about roast dinners, but we have had a few new restaurants open up round here..A Peruvian, a very good Pakistani restaurant, an oriental buffet and an American style bistro..and they, and the local Italian are packed to the rafters with French clients, whereas the existing French restaurants struggle except for the height of the tourist season and Sunday lunch. The older people here are a bit more traditional but they don't eat out that much, whereas younger French people now seem quite adventurous. (The Pakistani restaurant is a real winner because the British clients love a really good curry and the French Muslim population like it because it is halal. Win win for him)

[idun]

But this isn't about the eclectic choices one has when one goes out to dinner, but actually in the place you are staying and in this case it is rural France.

And that is the difference.

I would not expect fayre from any other country in a french hotel, camp site, gite etc etc, unless it was very clear in it's advertising. AND I would usually expect food from the terroir when en campagne in France. Surely that is a very good reason to actually holiday in rural France??? IF I wanted, more varied fayre, would have gone to a city/big town etc.

[lindal1000]

I suppose it depends whether you live here or are on holiday. Maybe British holiday makers do expect authentic French food.. Trouble is in the summer we are overrun with food markets virtually 7 nights a week and that's where most tourists go..and the restaurants are quiet. The most popular restaurant here in the summer is the Italian..packed every night..so I don't know.. people like it because their kids like pizza but they won't eat duck. We ate out in a new restaurant in a local campsite on Saturday. We had local cheese to start and duck as a main course, but they also did fish and chips and pasta and on Sundays they do a special Sunday roast.. I haven't been but I understand you usually have to book well in advance. English owned and a young French chef..

[ericd]

I would like to add to the regional differences concerning the meat dish with or without its vegetables.

In our family, we've always had the meat served with the vegetables. Not tons of it as in England, but "flageolets" with lamb, chips or mash or nouilles with steaks or chicken, jardinière de légumes with roasts etc.

Since buying our house in the Tarn & Garonne, we have been to many households for dinner but only 2 families served the meat dish and then, the vegetables.

In our family, when I was "a young lad", we always had the salad as a starter and this followed when I got married and had children. Some families have it after the main course, others with the cheese.

But .....in all these varied eating experiences, the dessert was always served last ..... unlike in England ......

[NickP]

As a matter of interest, why do the British have the cheese last and the French have the dessert last. Is it just culture or is there a valid taste reason?

[pomme]

The French eat the cheese with the last of the red wine and then have a sweet wine with dessert. Not sure where the wine fits in with British dessert but the British (used to) have port with (stilton) cheese.

[ericd]

Dessert last as you don't want to spend your afternoon tasting the remnants of an old camembert ......

[idun]

I have read, but cannot remember where, that cheese cleans the teeth, so it is an argument for having it last.

HOWEVER, I love to finish with something sweet, so the french way suits me very well.

Last time I had a big do here in England, 30 of us, I served a buffet dinner. Putting the starters out, as there was a choice, people got what they wanted and found somewhere to sit and eat. Then the main course, same same. And then I told everyone the cheese board was served, homemade bread, crackers and grapes was out. Few took it.

I then put all that away and got the multitude of puds out, and when they were finished, I had people tapping me on the shoulder asking where the bloody cheese was........... !

My thoughts about being asked are unprintable. I was a gracious host and said that I would go and get it all out again.

I can never seat 30 around my tables, the most I have ever got around tables at home is 20.

[mint]

I do what my first French teacher does in her own home.  L'entrée, then meat, then veg, then cheese with salade at the same time and finally dessert.

I think it makes sense to eat all the savoury stuff first and finish with dessert (and coffee) for those taking it.  Personally, I only have one coffee a day, café au lait at breakfast.

[idun]

I was never offered cheese with salade in France, other than as a starter.

And I am very partial to starter of a very simple salade compose, with batavia, comte, en des, and say walnuts and or cubes of lovely quality jambon blanc, served with a lovely vinaigrette and lovely bread. I don't hesitate to serve that as a starter here. As far as I am concerned a very tasty classic.

[mint]

How surprising, id, no salade with the cheese!

I am often served salade with cheese, not only in people's homes, but in restos and at many a village hall at communal meals after a walk