Planning a romantic break to the City of Lights? While you are there casually strolling along the Seine and enjoying the many cultural offerings, don't forget to try the delicious cuisine of the city. This article can serve as your gastronomic guide for the dishes you must try while you are in Paris.
1. Caramels
You'll never be able to describe in words how good the caramels are from the famous shops in Paris. Amazing in texture, buttery and available in flavors like chocolate, vanilla, fresh mint, grapefruit zest, Pu-erh tea and even mango, these little treats will change your life forever.
2. Baguette, Pain au Chocolat, and Pastries
It is safe to say that Paris is the place on earth with the highest density of top-quality, artisanal baguettes. So while you are in Paris, take advantage of the superior bread and baked goods. Find yourself a quality Artisan Boulanger (bread shop) and Patisserie (bakery), and enjoy your fair share of goodies daily! Each year a competition is held to select the 'Meilleure Baguette de Paris' and the list of best baguette awardees is a good resource to select your provider.
However, whenever you buy a baguette, make sure it has pointed ends, a sign that the bread is handmade. Also, it should make a hollow sound when you knock on the bread and should have a beautiful hole structure inside when you break it.
Don't forget to tear off the crusty, still-warm tip and nibble on it as you walk away, as any self-respecting Parisian does.
3. Macarons
These tiny Parisian treats come in many flavors, melt in your mouth and are neat enough not to scrap up your outfit. Perhaps these are the girliest desserts known to mankind and can be found at the famous pastry shops all around the city.
4. Mussels
While Moules Frites, the popular main dish of mussels and French fries, is considered a Belgian dish, the French version is called Moules Marinieres. The classic dish is prepared with mussels being steamed in white wine and served with a sauce made from the cooking liquid with butter and shallots.
It's considered a fast food in France and can be easily found in any food outlet in Paris.
5. Croissant
Croissants have long been a staple of French bakeries and patisseries and are a common part of Continental breakfast.
Walk past any pastry or bakery shop in the early morning hours and you'll be instantly spellbound by the warm rich buttery aroma of fresh croissants escaping from the air vents.
6. Madeleines
These are small French tea cake with a distinctive shell-like shape, with a typical bump on the one side and pale stripes on the other. They are thick in size, but light, soft, and smooth in texture, similar to a sponge cake. They are the most popular little French cake and common street food for morning or afternoon snacking.
7. Financier (Almond Cake)
The little rectangular almond cakes known as Financiers are sold in many of the best pastry shops in Paris. The cake's name probably comes from the fact that it resembles a solid gold brick.
The finest financiers are crusty from outside and have a moist interior, tasting almost as if they were filled with almond paste. The financier is probably the second most popular little French cake after Madeleine.
8. Duck confit
Duck is a meat often featured in French cuisine. The Duck Confit, considered one of the finest French dishes, is prepared in a centuries-old process of preservation, where the duck legs are cooked in their own fat.
Though the dish comes from Gascony, you can easily find a Parisian bistro, cafe, restaurant, and brasserie that serves a perfect confit de canard.
9. Cassoulet
The hearty, meat-studded dish from southwestern France is the ultimate one-pot meal. The dish is named after the deep, round earthen traditional cooking vessel, cassole, in which it is cooked and generally takes two days to prepare.
10. Creme brulee
Creme brulee, also known as burnt cream, or trinity cream is a dessert consisting of a rich custard base topped with a hard caramel layer. The custard base is traditionally flavored with vanilla but can have a variety of other flavorings.
Once you crack the thin, hard caramel shell and plunge your spoon into the rich custard beneath, there's no going back!
Conclusion
While you enjoy these delicious mouth-watering dishes in Paris, or in any part of the country, you will need a good SIM card for France to stay connected back home with friends, family, and colleagues and to post that food selfie on Instagram.
You can buy prepaid and postpaid France SIM cards from Matrix Cellular, who provides great offers with its International SIM cards.
Also, you could download the Matrix Travel Companion App for easy booking of a table in your favorite restaurant and avail attractive offers while shopping in the beautiful French capital.
Do remember to share your unique fooding experience with me!
Happy Traveling!
Note: This article was originally published by me as- Top 10 Food to Try in Paris