Food in France: What Do They Call It?

‘Comme on dit chez nous’ by Mathieu Avanzi

France has one of the world’s great cuisines, and the French really care about their food. So, you might think that they would use a common set of terms. An escargot is an escargot, n’est-ce pas? Well, not quite.

Mathieu Avanzi has written an entertaining and deeply researched book, Comme On Dit Chez Nous, about the terms used in France for all sorts of things, from food to pencils to tires and more. It is witty and informative and comes with maps showing where different terms are used, including in the francophone regions of Belgium and Switzerland.

Let’s look at a few foods and see what they’re called in France.

Croûton or Quignon?

While the end of a baguette has many names in France, two main camps oppose one another: Team Croûton and Team Quignon (quignon is a variation of coignon, from coin or “round”.) Whatever it’s called, you will often see a French person walking home from the bakery, breaking off the end of their baguette and munching happily away.

Pain au Chocolate or Chocolatine?

While in much of France that flaky chocolaty pastry is known as pain au chocolat, the southwest remains the stronghold of chocolatine. You are advised to avoid ordering pain au chocolat in Toulouse!

Endive or Chicon?

Legend has it that endive was first discovered when a Belgian farmer grew chicory underground to escape taxes. Originally named chicon (derived from chicorée), it was marketed in Paris as endive, because it comes from the variety of chicory called endive chicorée. The Belgians remain loyal to its original name and whatever you call it, it is delicious in a salad or when topped with tapenade.

Escargot or Cagouille?

The little gastropods called petit-gris are known as escargot in most of France, but not everywhere. In the western part of the country around Bordeaux, they are called cagouille, from the ancient Occitan word cogolha. A specialty of the region is the cagouillade, which combines cagouille, sausage, tomato, wine, and plenty of garlic.

Kebab or Grec?

Kebabs made their way to France from Germany, with its large Turkish population, and are called kebabs in most of the country (short for the Turkish döner kebab.) But in Paris, they were originally sold by Greek restaurants in the Latin Quarter, hence the name sandwich grec, later shortened to grec.

Pain aux Raisins or Escargot?

In most of France this spiral-shaped pastry topped with raisins is called, logically, pain au raisin. But its spiral shape leads some regions to call it, also logically, escargot. And that odd-sounding name of schneck in Alsace? It comes from neighboring Germany: schneck means escargot.

Galette des Rois or Gâteau des Rois?

The first Sunday of the year is Epiphany, when the French enjoy the pastry that makes someone queen or king for a day. But the country is divided as to what to call it, with the northerners opting for galette while in the south it is gâteau. Not only is the name different but the recipe is also different because…well, this is France!

The variation in terms across France is interesting, isn’t it? If you have experiences to share please do so in the comments below.

Image Credits

Book cover – Amazon
All other images – Facebook page Français de nos regions, the site of book author Mathieu Avanzi.

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