What to eat in France: a travel guide for foodies

Celebrated for its rich and diverse culinary heritage and prowess, France is a country where every region offers its own distinct flavors and traditional dishes, and food is taken seriously – very seriously. So much so that selecting just a handful of regions and specialties only scratches the surface, and is bound to offend someone somewhere! Still, in this article we take a beginner’s look at what to eat in France, paying homage to some French signature dishes and where to try them. Pour a glass of that other lauded French delight and join us as we taste our way around France.

What to eat in France: a travel guide for foodies

Eating like a local in France: food shops and markets

Firstly, if you want to understand the French attitude to food, take a stroll around the town center. Visit the local boucher, poissonnerie, épicerie and boulangerie, the shops selling regional cheeses, artisan chocolate and home-roasted coffee. Independent food shops are alive and thriving in France and form the backbone of the high street. The French shop for their food the way they shop for their clothes – carefully – visiting several stores and selecting quality items, thoughtfully choosing a particular cut of beef, some fresh asparagus, seasonal mushrooms, and an assortment of fromages.

Seasonality and quality ingredients are central to the French dining ethos, so visit the market and watch the locals flit from stall to stall, discussing choices with the stallholder, and delicately handling fruit and vegetables to test for freshness and quality. It’s always market day somewhere, and a visit will be rewarded with so much beautiful produce you won’t know whether to buy it or photograph it.

Top regions to visit in France for foodie trips

Lyon: the gastronomic capital

For serious foodies, Lyon is a culinary pilgrimage. Its gastronomic history dates back centuries, blending regional influences and home-style cooking with sophisticated, contemporary flair. The city is renowned for its bouchons, traditional Lyonnaise eateries serving hearty, rustic dishes and commonly using beef, pork, chicken and game such as rabbit and venison, as well as offal.

The brave might try tablier de sapeur, tripe marinated in white wine then coated in breadcrumbs and fried like a schnitzel, or andouillette, a distinctive and strong-flavored sausage also served in a sauce. At the other end of the menu you’ll find quenelles, light and fluffy dumplings served in a creamy sauce, potato-based gratin lyonnais, and the famous salade lyonnaise made of fresh greens, crispy lardons, and a perfectly poached egg. To finish, try vacherin, a combination of meringue filled with ice cream or sorbet, candied fruit and whipped cream.

Lyon’s vibrant markets, like Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse, are a paradise for food lovers. Discover local cheeses, like Saint-Marcellin and Bleu d’Auvergne, charcuteries, truffles and pastries, or lunch in one of the market’s restaurants. The city’s location, near both the wine regions of Beaujolais and the Rhône Valley, ensures an exceptional pairing of local wines.

Paris: traditional bistros and Michelin-starred artistry

While Paris must play second fiddle to Lyon as the country’s beating culinary heart, the capital has beauty, charm and romance on its side, plus a reputation as the cradle of haute cuisine. If fine dining is your thing, Parisians are spoiled with over 130 Michelin-starred restaurants serving contemporary, innovative menus, international flavors and twists on iconic French classics.

Generally, you’re more likely to find locals dining in one of many wonderful neighborhood bistros and brasseries, often tucked away in a tiny backstreet and serving classic dishes like garlicky escargots, duck confit, rare entrecôte steak and tarte au citron. You could hunt down one of the city’s dozen or so historic bouillons, traditional Parisian restaurants dating back to 1860, offering simple and traditional cuisine at very reasonable prices for Paris. You might need to queue and you may share your table with other customers.

At the heart of Paris’s gastronomic identity are its patisseries and boulangeries, whose window displays tempt you with buttery croissants, éclairs and tarts that wouldn’t be out of place in an art gallery. The macaron has been elevated to iconic status, and traditional bakeries make effortless baguettes using time-honored techniques.

Paris’s vibrant café culture is alive and well, too, so make like a local and sip an espresso at a sidewalk table, nibble on a pain au chocolat or taste the best croque monsieur, while watching the world go by. For markets, try the Marché Bastille and Marché des Enfants Rouges, or rub shoulders with Michelin-starred chefs and the Paris elite over organic produce at the Marché Raspail.

Across land and sea: specialties of Normandy

In Normandy, cool, lush pastures make it the perfect place for dairy farming and the region is renowned for its butter, cream and cheese. Soft, creamy Camembert, crumbly Livarot, Pont-l’Évêque and Neufchâtel, eaten simply with a crusty baguette and washed down with a glass of Normandy cider.

The region’s rich, golden beurre d’Isigny, prized for its smooth texture and deep flavor, is used in many local dishes such as tarte tatin, an upside-down caramelized apple tart, and as a base for cooking its spectacular seafood. Try coquilles Saint-Jacques scallops cooked in butter and cream, with a glass of Calvados on the side, the region’s famous – and potent – apple brandy.

Provence and the Côte d’Azur

The food of southeastern France reflects the sun-soaked produce of the area and its Mediterranean culture. Fresh vegetables, abundant local seafood, and staple ingredients like olive oil, garlic, tomatoes and herbs dominate the base of many dishes. Marseille’s famous seafood bouillabaisse is one of these, plus ratatouille and pieds paquets, a lamb-based pasta dish. The salade niçoise is everywhere, filled with fresh tuna, olives, capers and anchovies.

In winter, truffles are widely available and you might find them in a black truffle risotto. Join local chefs at the markets in Vaucluse or in Richerenches from mid-November to mid-March. Other regional specialties include estouffade and daube, traditional slow-cooked stews. Pick up some herbes de Provence, a fragrant mix of rosemary, thyme, oregano and lavender.

The rich flavors of French Basque Country

Basque Country spans France and Spain and its cuisine offers a unique fusion of influences from both countries. It also has one of the highest concentrations of Michelin-starred restaurants per capita in the world and dozens of famous chefs, yet retains its distinctive regional identity.

French Basque cuisine is bold, and uses local ingredients such as the region’s sweet Espelette peppers, fresh Atlantic seafood and Bayonne ham, which you’ll see hanging everywhere. Every restaurant has its version of the Basque fish stew, which usually includes mussels, prawns, eel, hake and monkfish, topped with garlic croutons and a few sprigs of parsley. Other traditional stews include marmitako, made with tuna, potatoes, peppers and tomatoes, and axoa d’Espelette, made with veal.

Brittany’s crepes and fresh seafood catches

The coastline of Brittany in France’s northwest provides a bounty of seafood including crab from Saint-Malo, lobster from Camaret-sur-Mer, and Cancale’s famous oysters – buy these fresh from the market stall with a squeeze of lemon. Also look out for cotriade fish stew, and palourdes farcies – a type of stuffed clam.

The area is also famed for its galettes, savory buckwheat pancakes – delicate yet hearty dishes filled with everything from fresh seafood to simple cheese and ham. In Brittany nearly everything is made with butter, from the rich sauces accompanying their seafood to delicious sweet treats, like the famous far breton, a custard-based dessert with prunes soaked in Armagnac.

The Loire Valley: the garden of France

The fertile Loire Valley is renowned for its fresh produce, from asparagus, apples and mushrooms to lentils and lamb’s lettuce (known locally as la mâche). But it’s also a very meaty region, with duck, quail, wild boar and venison on many menus, and which you might find in a pithivier – a pie hailing from a town of the same name near Orléans.

You’ll find Nantes’ famous beurre blanc sauce served with perch or bream from the Loire River, perfectly paired with a sauvignon blanc from Sancerre and the chenin blanc from Vouvray. One of the Loire Valley’s must-try specialties is pork rillettes, a rough pâté hailing from Tours. Of course, the region also has its own array of cheeses, such as Crottin de Chavignol, a tangy goat’s cheese often grilled and served warm with salad and bread.

The hearty cheeses and meats of Franche-Comté

Staying on the subject of cheese, Franche-Comté near the Swiss border is home to some of France’s most famous. These include Morbier, Mont d’Or and Comté, a firm, nutty cheese often used in traditional French dishes like fondue or croque monsieur. Try them with a glass of local vin jaune.

This region also has a strong meat culture, with dishes such as potée comtoise, a hearty smoked sausage and vegetable stew. We can’t mention this region without a nod to the poulet de Bresse, a chicken known for its rich meat that is buttery in texture and almost nutty in flavor, thanks to its slow-growing breed and a finishing feed of milk-soaked grains.

Burgundy and its wine culture

Burgundy’s world-class vineyards produce some of the finest pinot noir and chardonnay, and tasting the wine on its home terroir and enjoying it alongside local specialties is a treat. Take a guided tour of some of the estates around the beautiful town of Beaune, and stop for lunch at one of the vineyards.

Dishes here tend to be rich and full-flavored, ideally matched to the local wines which are fundamental to Burgundian cuisine. Picture hearty dishes like the iconic bœuf bourguignon, coq-au-vin, escargots de Bourgogne (snails cooked in herb butter) and rabbit à la moutarde, using the region’s Dijon mustard.

Tips and etiquette

The French eating schedule explained

In France, breakfast is the least important meal of the day, and is typically light, sweet and fairly simple. It might be breakfast cereal, a pastry or simply a tartine, a slice of bread with topping, often dunked in a large milky coffee.

French people famously don’t snack, but they do make the most of lunchtime which is often the main meal of the day, taken around 12–2pm. Most French people eat dinner at 8pm or later and compared with lunch, it’s traditionally a lighter meal such as soup or salad with bread and a dessert.

Dining dos and don’ts

French dining etiquette is mainly about simple table manners, and not particular to France, such as not talking with your mouth full and avoiding reaching across the table. Typically in France, diners use both their knife and fork to eat, and don’t rely on the American habit of using just a fork. Keep your elbows off the table, and wait until everyone has a drink before taking a sip – or more importantly, wait for the toast: santé!

Tipping in France: a guide for travelers

Whether you’re at a local café or a Michelin-starred restaurant, a 15% service charge is automatically included by law – you might see service compris on your bill. Leaving an extra gratuity isn’t expected, but is a nice gesture, especially if you have a friendly or efficient waiter.

Make it happen

As you try to decide what to eat in France, you’ll soon find there’s so much to explore in this fabulous foodie country. If we’ve whetted your appetite, explore our tours or contact our local experts, and let us help you put together a tailor-made itinerary catering to all your foodie desires.