Au Lycée de Gascogne
As I've mentioned before, the school I worked at provides high school students with a diploma in tourism, hotel management, serving or culinary. The students who study tourism and hotel management receive a diploma that is basically the equivalent of a community college diploma in Canada. These students have already received their Baccalauréat; which is their high school diploma and attend my school for a two-year specialized certificate.
The serving and culinary students are high school aged and receive their specialized Baccalauréat. These students study regular high school topics such as math, history, French and English along with practical classes. The culinary students take practical classes where they practice preparing meals, baking desserts and the proper presentation with each dish.
The serving students take practical classes where they are taught how to serve wine (a very systematic process in France), how to carry four plates at a time, sommelier classes (a wine expert - crucial for servers so they can suggest the proper wine for any meal), and bar tending classes (the legal age to serve alcohol in France is 16).
When I first arrived at the school, it seemed a little absurd to get a diploma in serving. My students are taught things that I learned on my own from working with the MacIntyre family at the Timberland.
The students were amazed that I had worked in a restaurant and that it was a paying job even though I didn't have a culinary or serving diploma. Throughout the year, the students go on work placements where they get the chance to work in restaurants and gain experience, but they don't earn any pay for their work.
Since I worked in a culinary school, you can only imagine how fabulous the lunches were. For 2,80 €, you received an appetizer, salad, main course, dessert, bread and wine prepared and served by the students.
For appetizers, there was a wide variety to choose from: grated carrots, tuna, sliced Provençal meats, olives, deviled eggs, couscous with all kinds of vegetables and so on. I usually chose grated carrots with tuna, deviled eggs and the couscous.
With regards to the main courses, there was always a choice between two meats, usually something like fish or beef; duck or lamb; or pork or chicken; all of which were fabulously prepared.
For your main course you had a choice of a vegetable or potato or both. I usually chose a meat and vegetable combination.
My favourite vegetable dish was green beans with minced onions and tomatoes. Oh, but I also loved this cauliflower and Emmental cheese concoction. Then there were the baked balsamic tomatoes. Basically the vegetable dishes were fabulous.
As for dessert, these were always delicious treats. My top three favourites would have to be the mousse au chocolat, strawberries sautéed in chocolate sauce and baked apples.
As I said, the school also served wine at lunch and this was not just for the teachers, but for the students as well. The French lifestyle with regards to alcohol is much different than it is at home. Wine is a part of the meal, and there would be no point in eating Poulet Basquaise without the proper wine to compliment the red pepper and tomato sauce. Wine and food are one entity in France.
After you fill your tray with your four-star lunch, there is a table set up with condiments. They always have mayonnaise, ketchup, sugar, salt, pepper and vinaigrette. There is no such thing as salad dressing as we know it in France. The way to ‘dress' your salad is simple: mix up some oil, vinegar, salt, pepper; sugar and mustard then drizzle it over your salad.
The mustard is different as well. You can't get regular yellow mustard like at home, it's all Dijon-style mustard. The mustard is amazing in France it has a good kick to it and will clear your sinuses out if you don't eat it with caution.
When you sit down at the table, it is very important to wish everyone around you "bon appétit." I found it very amusing when I first arrived, all over the cafeteria you could hear echoes of "bon appétit" coming from all directions. If you don't wish someone "bon appétit," it's as though you are wishing them bad health.
The same goes for when you clink glasses with people. If you don't look the other person in the eye it's as though you are wishing them bad luck and health. It's also customary to fill everyone's glass around you before you fill your own glass.
I made the mistake of not doing this in front of a colleague I barely knew and when I filled my glass first she promptly told me "En France, ce que vous venez de faire est très, très impoli" (In France, we consider what you just did to be very, very rude). Needless to say, I made sure never to make the same mistake again.
When I came to France, I was a very picky eater, but I knew that anything served in my school's cafeteria would be high quality and it would be a shame not to try everything once. I've never said no to any meal at the school and it was worth it.
The French have a much higher appreciation for food than we do, and I've certainly gained one. The food is not very spicy or rich, but rather subtle and mild but it's excellent.
Lunch hours in France are from 12:30 until 2 p.m. You need a good hour to eat your food and enjoy it and then a half an hour to drink your coffee. You have to be open minded about the things you eat, you have to try everything once and most certainly, you must wish everyone bon appétit!
Shannon MacLeod teaches English in Bordeaux, France. She is the daughter of Catherine and Gerald MacLeod of Sussex Corner.
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