Cuisine Paper Week 3

Throughout this whole trip I have taken a particularly profound interest in our cuisine and dining experiences. From the very beginning I have been so interested to find out both the differences and similarities between American and French cuisine. I think that I really got the feel for many of the traditional French dishes these last three weeks studying in Paris, especially when it came to lunchtime. I have noticed that for most of the French it is very typical to both sit and relax at a side street café but it’s also not out of the norm to see a Parisian simply run into a brasserie to retrieve a baguette sandwich for their mid day lunch break. I found these sandwiches myself to be extremely delicious, and I could see why one would want to indulge in one for their mid day meal, as I typically do back in the states. One thing I have found interesting though about the French is the fact that they all make the same combination of ingredients no matter where you go. You are always able to find a ham and cheese, some sort of sliced chicken, fish or tuna salad baguette sandwich anywhere you wonder off to. These are three of the sometimes four or five choices you have when picking a sandwich. I found this intriguing seeing that this is typically never the case in the U.S. Back in the states I have conducted over my past twenty-one years how numerous types of sandwiches are made available for you anywhere you go. These sandwiches are rarely the same seeing that the U.S. tends to branch out and try new recipes, along with using many different kinds of ingredients and styles all over the country. I am use to seeing sandwiches that include deli meats, steak, BBQ pork etc. It’s wild to think about all the different combinations that are made available for us back in the states, along with all of the condiments and toppings. I have never seen any other condiments besides mayonnaise and mustard used on a sandwich while in Paris, this sure took me for a surprise.
I have tried most of the options made available each time I have traveled into a Brassiere and can say I have missed the number of different options made available back in the states. In our reading for this week I found a quote from the article, “Film, Food, and La Francite,” that I felt really gave a good explanation for my pending inquiry. According to Roland Barthes, he states, “French food is never supposed to innovate except for rediscovering lost secrets; on the one hand, it implies an aristocratic tradition…and on the other, food is