# The French Misconnection!



## CraigC (Jan 29, 2011)

Ever have a menu misunderstanding?
Back in September 2007, I went to Marseille for business. The folks I was doing the job for put me up in a hotel and I was on my own for dinner. There was a little bistro across the street and I had eaten there for the past two days. I had been lucky in my selections those two days as the menu was in French only, which I don't speak. However, I do have a little knowledge from some familiarity with Cajun food names. I'm really familiar with Andouille. I also thought that the French, by adding "ette" to the end of a word meant pettite or small. So when I saw Andouillette on the menu, my mind read "little Andouille". After conferring with a lady that spoke a little english, which mainly involved pointing and head shaking, I decided that this would be good and ordered it. Big mistake! When the plate arrived, there was one large sausage looking item, a good size bowl of mustard sauce and some roasted potatoes. After poking around some with my fork at the browned sausage casing, I decided that sausage is sausage and cut off a bite. After popping it in my mouth and starting to chew, I realized what that mustard sauce was for! This was offal, but I managed to get about 3/4 of it down before the mustard sauce ran out. BTW, the large grin on that lady's face should have given me a clue. Next evening I found an Italian place around the corner.

It wasn't until the flight back that I found out what Andouillette is. It really is offal, as in tripe, and appearantly some sort of national dish. They can keep it!

Craig


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## Rocklobster (Jan 29, 2011)

Tripe is popular all over Europe. Personally, I find it bland. The best I`ve had was in Italy where they stew it for hours in tomato sauce. But then it pretty much breaks down and takes on the flavor of the sauce. I wouldn`t go as far as saying it is a National dish anywhere. I`ts like saying bulls testicles are an national dish in the US. Just because it is unique to that region and some people eat it, you can hardly call it a favoirite dish to everybody in the nation. Some of our aboriginal citizens up North eat Whale blubber. I have never had it. 

I had the same sort of experience as you while in Hamburg, Germany. I was terribly hung over one afternoon, after spending the evening out with a German friend of mine. He brought me to a small family owned restaurant which he frequented. I couldn`t understand what they were saying and told him to order me something that I had never had. Anyway, when my meal came it was a huge pigs knee joint with a bit of mashed potatos on the side. the meat was very stringy and the bone rolled around on my plate. He laughed his head off while he was eating his lunch which was a very good looking pizza. I fought my way through most of it because I didn`t want to offend the owners.....


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## CraigC (Jan 29, 2011)

Wow you seem so serious. It was meant to be humorous. BTW, you are lucky to have been to Germany. I'm of German decent and have never been. I really like Antibes and loved taking the train to Milan, beautiful scenery. Had great food in both places!

Craig


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## Rocklobster (Jan 29, 2011)

CraigC said:


> Wow you seem so serious. It was meant to be humorous. BTW, you are lucky to have been to Germany. I'm of German decent and have never been. I really like Antibes and loved taking the train to Milan, beautiful scenery. Had great food in both places!
> 
> Craig


Oh, God! Sorry if I came off that way. I certainly didn't mean it. I guess I have a bit of a cynical dilivery. That was my pre-coffee response.  The food in Germany was great, but ironically, the best stuff I ate there was at ethnic restaurants.

I thought the bull testicle thing was funny.

Peace, Craig C!


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## CraigC (Jan 29, 2011)

Rocklobster said:


> Oh, God! Sorry if I came off that way. I certainly didn't mean it. I guess I have a bit of a cynical dilivery. That was my pre-coffee response.  The food in Germany was great, but ironically, the best stuff I ate there was at ethnic restaurants.
> 
> I thought the bull testicle thing was funny.
> 
> Peace, Craig C!


 
Rocky Mountain Oysters! I tryed a mixed grill in Milan, but couldn't bring myself to try the ram testicles.

Craig


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## PrincessFiona60 (Jan 29, 2011)

CraigC said:


> Rocky Mountain Oysters! I tryed a mixed grill in Milan, but couldn't bring myself to try the ram testicles.
> 
> Craig


 
I've lived in the  Rocky Mountains my entire adult life...Never and NO!


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## Claire (Feb 20, 2011)

Hey, I took it as you meant it.  Heck, my mom says that you can laugh or cry when something hits you in the face (as it did, literally, one time in Germany when a sausage exploded on my dad!), and laughing is a heck more fun!  I would definitely not have known that and made the same mistake!  I've never had tripe and, while I like a lot of organ meats and such, for some reason this one is one I try to avoid.  Once I saw a sign when traveling through the southwest U.S. at a restaurant that said, "Menudo, breakfast of champions."  I hear it is great for hangovers.  I've had many hangovers in my life, but have never considered that eating ... well, you get it .... would do anything but make me .... recycle the night before's booze and food?  Maybe that's the point!


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## Addie (Apr 14, 2015)

In this town, tripe is served every Saturday in every Italian restaurant. And if you can't make it to the restaurant of your choice, you can bet the wife is making it that day. When I worked at an Italian restaurant, I used to go in early on Saturday morning. The big pans had been boiling since the wee hours of the morn and I had to cut it all up into bite size pieces. The tomato sauce was in the largest pot they had. All the tripe was dumped in to finish simmering in the sauce. By 11 a.m. the restaurant opened and by 12 noon, all the tripe was gone. It was a big money maker for the restaurant and me. I never even tasted it. Never will.


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## Mad Cook (Apr 15, 2015)

Addie said:


> In this town, tripe is served every Saturday in every Italian restaurant. And if you can't make it to the restaurant of your choice, you can bet the wife is making it that day. When I worked at an Italian restaurant, I used to go in early on Saturday morning. The big pans had been boiling since the wee hours of the morn and I had to cut it all up into bite size pieces. The tomato sauce was in the largest pot they had. All the tripe was dumped in to finish simmering in the sauce. By 11 a.m. the restaurant opened and by 12 noon, all the tripe was gone. It was a big money maker for the restaurant and me. I never even tasted it. Never will.


In the old fashioned mill towns in the north of England, shops which sell tripe also sell boiled cow heel and something called elder which is (turn away now if you have delicate constitution) cow's udder. It is sold boiled and it's grey. I'm fairly adventurous with food but elder has never appealed so I haven't tried it. However the older local folk queue up for everything in the shop. When I first went to live in Hyde (a small, former cotton town on the Cheshire/Lancashire border) there were 2 tripe stalls in the indoor market and a trip shop on the high street. There's only one stall on the market these days but it does brisk business on Saturdays when the aficionados treat their husbands to tripe and salad for tea in the summer or hot tripe with white onion sauce in the winter.

We do have good food in The British Isles, honestly.


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## Gravy Queen (Apr 15, 2015)

I think its probably an older generation of die hards still eating tripe.


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## Addie (Apr 15, 2015)

Gravy Queen said:


> I think its probably an older generation of die hards still eating tripe.



In this country it those who are European and are immigrants. Fortunately, they are passing it down to their kids.


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## jennyema (Apr 15, 2015)

Tripe is ok by me when its prepared well.

My favorite bite of tripe is in the Shanghai style hot and sour soup at Joe's Shanghai in Manhattan


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## PrincessFiona60 (Apr 15, 2015)

Plenty of tripe is eaten in the foods of the Southwest and Mexico.


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## CharlieD (Apr 15, 2015)

Bull testicles though edible, are really nothing to write home about. Friend of mine went even further, he says he loves bull male part, says it is amazing. I am brave and adventurous when it comes to food, but only to a certain degree.


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## CharlieD (Apr 15, 2015)

I was just thinking, could we create a thread where we can add foreign food names with English translation, for those lucky of us who travel, or planing to travel.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Apr 15, 2015)

CharlieD said:


> I was just thinking, could we create a thread where we can add foreign food names with English translation, for those lucky of us who travel, or planing to travel.



Sure Charlie, I would put it in "Road Food" as it would not be a recipe thread, do you want me to create it?


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## Gravy Queen (Apr 15, 2015)

Stupid question but what is Road Food ?


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## PrincessFiona60 (Apr 15, 2015)

Gravy Queen said:


> Stupid question but what is Road Food ?



Food that you eat while you are traveling and going Abroad.


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## Wyshiepoo (Apr 15, 2015)

Back in the day when our kids were young Mrs Wyshiepoo and I had a little motor home (I think RV in US speak?)


We were in Belgium quite near Brussels, pitched up on our site. I was doing something around the motor home and evening meal time was approaching.


Mrs Wyshiepoo who isn't/wasn't the bravest of travellers said, "It's no good I've got to learn, I'll go and get something to eat from the supermarket nearby."


She went off with the sprogs and returned looking rather please with herself.


"I've bought two stews, one for today and one for tomorrow, they look delicious."


I didn't have the heart to tell her what she had ordered there and then I waited till the day after and told her that the first meal was horse casserole and the second was a kind of ox tongue casserole.


You should have seen her face.


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## Gravy Queen (Apr 15, 2015)

Oh so we could maybe have a Travel forum ? The term road food made me think of foods that you would see being prepared and sold on a street. I took it a bit too literally .


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## Wyshiepoo (Apr 15, 2015)

Gravy Queen said:


> Oh so we could maybe have a Travel forum ? The term road food made me think of foods that you would see being prepared and sold on a street. I took it a bit too literally .


 

I was thinking they meant road kill!!!!!


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## Gravy Queen (Apr 15, 2015)

I thought of road kill too ! I pictured squished squirrels .


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## PrincessFiona60 (Apr 15, 2015)

Road Food is our choice for a Travel Forum.  Let's try to keeps the Forum Headings simple, if you have a question, we are certainly happy to explain the wording on the site based in the US.  It would be very difficult to create forums across the board that make sense to people from around the world.

Back to the topic at hand Misunderstandings and language differences about food from country to country.

If you would like to continue this pursuit of new forums or changing titles to established forums please post in the TECH/Admin Forum.


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## CharlieD (Apr 15, 2015)

PrincessFiona60 said:


> Sure Charlie, I would put it in "Road Food" as it would not be a recipe thread, do you want me to create it?



I do not know if we need a vote to create something like this, but if we do count me as 1. What do other people have to say?


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## PrincessFiona60 (Apr 15, 2015)

CharlieD said:


> I do not know if we need a vote to create something like this, but if we do count me as 1. What do other people have to say?



We donb't need a vote, I'll get it started in the Road Food Forum if you want me to do that.


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## GotGarlic (Apr 15, 2015)

Gravy Queen said:


> Oh so we could maybe have a Travel forum ? The term road food made me think of foods that you would see being prepared and sold on a street. I took it a bit too literally .



That would be street food  That *is* what we call it, btw


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## bethzaring (Apr 15, 2015)

PrincessFiona60 said:


> Plenty of tripe is eaten in the foods of the Southwest and Mexico.


 
I couldn't believe the amount of meat case space given to tripe in this town


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## taxlady (Apr 15, 2015)

Road food because it's what you eat on a road trip.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Apr 16, 2015)

bethzaring said:


> I couldn't believe the amount of meat case space given to tripe in this town



There's a lot of tripe space here in Montana, too! I think there is a trend going on up here as all the Mexican restaurants are advertising Menudo and it's not just for Cinco de Mayo.


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## Gravy Queen (Apr 16, 2015)

So if you travel within your own country , driving , train trips, coaches etc then it's Road Food , but if you fly abroad whats it called ? It's not a road trip is it ? It just sounds a bit limiting. Then again , in the US you fly to other states, is it still a road trip ?

Confused Numpty
England


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## PrincessFiona60 (Apr 16, 2015)

Gravy Queen said:


> So if you travel within your own country , driving , train trips, coaches etc then it's Road Food , but if you fly abroad whats it called ? It's not a road trip is it ? It just sounds a bit limiting. Then again , in the US you fly to other states, is it still a road trip ?
> 
> Confused Numpty
> England



You are taking words too literally.  Road Food is the food you eat while traveling, it accounts for any traveling, by sea, plane, train, car, dog sled or covered wagon.  It is the heading for the forum at Discuss Cooking that accounts for any food eaten while traveling.  

It can be food you have brought with you, food you have purchased and cooked yourself or food you purchase in a restaurant.


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## Gravy Queen (Apr 16, 2015)

Hmm I think how we would describe a road trip here just has a different meaning . Travelling overseas to another country is plain old travel or a holiday . No matter , horses for courses


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## GotGarlic (Apr 16, 2015)

Again, too literal, GQ. A road trip is traveling by car but road food is food eaten while traveling.


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## Gravy Queen (Apr 16, 2015)

Doh


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## Wyshiepoo (Apr 16, 2015)

Just thought of a menu misunderstanding that happened to me.


I was very much younger and thought I knew it all.We were on our way to Bruges and had stopped off on the way in Poperinge. We went to a restaurant and I saw something called Filet Americain on the menu.


I thought it was going to be a nice steak wit all the American trimmings.


It was actually a kind of Steak Tartare. I had never eaten raw steak before and not wanting to show my ignorance ate it rather than sending it back.


It was actually delish, so a rather fortuitous mistake on my part.


I actually ate it again on a recent return to Belgium.


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## Addie (Apr 16, 2015)

Gravy Queen said:


> Hmm I think how we would describe a road trip here just has a different meaning . Travelling overseas to another country is plain old travel or a holiday . No matter , horses for courses



Here in the States, we have an expression. "Let's hit the road." That could mean catch a bus, train, plane, or even walk. In that case it would be to a local eatery. But you are eating away from home. And I think I am in agreement with the meaning in that it should be food not found in our own country that we found to be interest, different or even unpleasant for our own taste buds. But it is not served in our own home. A food that is new to us.


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## Mad Cook (Apr 16, 2015)

Gravy Queen said:


> I think its probably an older generation of die hards still eating tripe.


Very much so in Hyde.


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## aleciasalibi (Jul 27, 2015)

The only type of miscommunication I've had is before I even entered a restaurant. On a trip into the city with my mom, amid trying to apartment hunt, we decided we wanted asian food (didn't care which variety). We drove along until we found something that seemed fitting and went inside. Little did we know, we found ourselves a dim sum restaurant. No one spoke even a lick of English. At the time, we had NO idea what was going on and left after being approached a few times. All I remember is being so overwhelmed by everything.

I still haven't made it to a dim sum place, but now that I'm more familiar with them I can't wait to try someday.


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## menumaker (Jul 29, 2015)

Sorry,but  I really like Andouillette. There, I've said it in a little voice! However, we don't eat it like that here. We eat it sliced really thin as part of a selection of charcuterie to have with drinks, sundowners or 'Aperitifs'
Served like that, especially when made by a good butcher and is fresh and peppery it is delicious. I, like mad cook have never been tempted to eat the usual 'tripe' although my Aunt adored it.


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## Steve Kroll (Jul 29, 2015)

I once had an experience similar to Craig's original post. My wife and I went to Paris with our daughter many years ago. I think she was 11 at the time. We had made dinner reservations at a wonderful little restaurant called Le Florimond, which was close to our hotel. They had a prix fixe menu where you could select appetizer, entree, and cheese/dessert. One of the entrees was "crepinette de veau." My daughter asked what that was. My limited French interpreted this as being some sort of small savory crepe made with veal. Well, she thought that sounded delicious. 

When the waiter came to take our order, she asked for the crepinette de veau. 

The waiter cocked an eyebrow and looked at my wife and I. 

"Young lady," he asked her in English, "Are you sure you would like the crepinette? It is a sweetbread, you know."

This really made her eyes light up. All she heard were the words "sweet" and "bread" - two of her favorite foods. In her mind I'm sure she was picturing a pastry. I, of course, heard something completely different. 

I looked at her and said, "Honey, I don't think you would like sweetbreads."

"Why wouldn't I? I think it sounds good. Yes, I think I would like the sweet bread." she insisted.

I said "okay then. Sweetbreads, it is."

The waiter shrugged and took the order. I ordered steak medallions and my wife ordered fish.

When the small chalky sort of things arrived (thankfully covered in gravy), the look on her face was priceless. I explained that it was probably brains, but, since she had been so insistent on ordering it, she needed to at least try it.

I have to give her credit for being brave. She ate three bites before deciding she didn't like it and putting down her fork. 

I ended up giving her most of my steak, and I finished the crepinette, which was actually quite delicious.

To this day, she is a relatively adventurous eater, but has gotten much better at asking questions when there is something she doesn't quite understand.


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## GotGarlic (Jul 29, 2015)

That's a great story, Steve


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## Cooking Goddess (Jul 29, 2015)

We weren't even in a foreign country to run up against our experience. Our son's tripping stone was "soft-shelled crabs" when he was somewhere around the age of 10. We were going from OH to FL and stopped to visit family in VA. When we were at a seafood restaurant he saw them on the menu. Even though none of us were familiar with exactly how soft the crab was, he decided to be brave and order it. When they came out breaded, fried and *whole*, complete with little legs all hanging out there, he blanched a bit. Food trooper that he is, he ate all of them, save the one he could convince his Dad to try. Neither his sister nor I were were willing to trade our food for his.


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## GotGarlic (Jul 29, 2015)

CG, I've lived in Virginia since 1985 and I have never tried soft-shell crab! It's supposed to be a great delicacy, available May through September - the molting season   I guess I really should try it sometime.


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## Dawgluver (Jul 29, 2015)

Soft shell crab is really good!  Years ago, one of our little town's restaurants had it as a special.  I had no idea what to do with it either, thankfully the owner told me to eat it all.  It was nicely battered, and even the little legs were delicious.


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## CraigC (Jul 30, 2015)

CLT sandwich! Lightly coated with a flour, salt and pepper dredge, then pan sauteed in butter. White sandwich bread, lettuce, tomato and mayo! Oh man! In second place, a nice soft shell crab Po Boy with remoulade would fit the bill.


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## Addie (Jul 30, 2015)

We were at my son Poo's graduation from Yale dinner and at a Turkish restaurant. A favorite food of Poo's in-laws. I had no idea what the dishes were. So there is a section for seafood. Now I am deathly allergic to iodine in seafood. I asked Poo to pick something for me from the seafood section. I thought he would order a local fish. 

My dinner arrived. Scallops. That seemed safe enough. Sometimes I can eat them, sometimes not. I took one bite of a very small piece and immediately had to spit it out. I whispered to Poo that it was loaded with iodine. And highly flavored with Turkish seasoning. He whispered back, make like you are eating. So I pushed the food around my plate, cut some of it up, and every so often Poo would reach over with his fork and take some of my food. By the time the meal was over it looked like I had eaten more than half. I no longer order scallops when eating out. Poo picked me up something to eat at Burger King on the way home. And I had to share the FF with my grandson.  

From that day on, if I am going to eat seafood, it is always at home and always fried clams. I have never had a problem with them. 

I was a little upset. This was not the in-laws day, it was Poo's day. And he should have been the one to decide what food we were all going to eat. When I mentioned this to him, he said they had already made the reservations a day or so ahead. They took it out of his hands. He would have taken us all to an Italian restaurant. His in-laws have been to Italy many, many times and are quite familiar with the food.


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## Zagut (Jul 30, 2015)

CraigC said:


> CLT sandwich! Lightly coated with a flour, salt and pepper dredge, then pan sauteed in butter. White sandwich bread, lettuce, tomato and mayo! Oh man! In second place, a nice soft shell crab Po Boy with remoulade would fit the bill.


 
That's the way to cook soft crabs. 

But I'll pass on the Bread, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. 

I don't want anything to get in the way of the crab. 



Not a misunderstanding about the food but.................

Once I was taken to one of those Japanese restaurants where they prepare the food at the table. 

The chef arrived and began to prepare the chow.
I picked up my fork in anticipation.
He asked to see my fork and when handed over he tucked it away and said to me. "What do you think this is? Applebees? This is Japanese restaurant. You use chopstick."
Well I did.
After a while I asked to see my fork.
With a smile on my face I said look.
I used the fork to cut a piece of meat in 1/2 and said. "Chop"
Then skewered the piece with the fork and said. "Stick"
Pointing at the fork I said. "Chopstick"
Got a huge smile and nod of approval from him for that. 
I gave him back the fork and used his chopsticks for the rest of the evening.


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