Doing the Cafes in France

Doing the french cafe

 

When in France one must do the cafes, the brasseries, the restaurants, the bakeries, the markets, the food thing.

Especially the cafes.

You cannot come to France without doing the cafes it would be a sin.

 

 

French restaurant

Did you know that when you go into a cafe you can order a coffee, sit back and watch the world go by. The owners will never ask you to leave, well at least they won't as long as they are opened. Doing the cafes implies that you will sit back, relax and take your time.

Sipping life, conversation, the moment is a must.

 

French cafe counter

 

The French cafe counter.

The stack of white coffee cups,

the metal basket full of fresh oranges,

the espresso machine,

the mirrored back wall,

the chalk board menu….

it is classic part of the French cafe.

 

Brasserie

 

Ah the pleasure of taking France in over food and drink.

To stop at a cafe, sit back, and be part of the scene.

Hemingway, Sand, Monet, Cezanne…

Nicoise salad, pomme frites, moutarde…

Black beret, glass of wine and the Marseillaise.

My cousins are on their way to becoming French.

 

 



Comments

27 responses to “Doing the Cafes in France”

  1. I can only sigh wistfully…..

  2. Wish I was there!

  3. Natalie

    Corey,You are contagious!
    I love the way you describe France and its culture. You have an amazing gift and I am happy that you share it with us. You have learned me to look at life in a new way, with new eyes. To se the beauty and the positive things…
    As a mother to many children (six) your description of the cafes are like a dream (haha)
    so I wonder are there places(cafes, restaurants etc) were french families with more than 1½ children can go ? Perhaps this was a challange : )

  4. oh to magic myself there

  5. You can always tell the Americans at the cafe because we hurry through our coffee and ask for “l’addition” so we can be on our way again. We’ll know we have embraced French life when we sit back and relax long after the last drops of coffee are gone.

  6. Cafes with big comfy chairs, espresso with citrus and good company. Sounds like a fantastic day, I could be French.

  7. Love and hugs and many good wishes.
    Thanks a latte for your friendship.
    Love Jeanne

  8. we were at a show, I missed Anne’s birthday.. I will wait an share a piece of cake with her when we get there. In the mean time, Happy Happy Birthday,every one should be so blessed to have a friend like you! Love Linda

  9. Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh…

  10. I love that they allow leisurely stops; I think part of the reason we are programmed to hurry on here is because the wait staff are pushing the tab onto the table before the last bite or sip has been taken (the more table turnover the more tips they get). When we go out with friends, we like to frequent a little deli that is as you describe, they never push you out the door (until they are closing–and most of the time we are still there at closing time).

  11. The outdoor cafes are my favorite…watching people of all cultures parading by. We try in the USA to replicate this but it just never seems the same as sitting in an outdoor cafe in France 😉

  12. I can only dream . . .

  13. I so feel with your friends who are sighing…. because THIS is one of France’s most adorable cultures. The ‘right’ to sit and order a coffee and watch the world go by. In every other country I know you get asked after a while if you’d like to order something else to keep the place ‘running’…., but I’ve never been pushed in France. It gives you such a feeling of freedom, holidaying, ‘having a good time’ to sit – especially in summer time when you sit outside – and you drink all the going ons, together with your café. In my case it’s often followed anyhow by something more substantial…. :)))

  14. I loved reading about your trip to China…but I’m SO happy you’re back home in France! These images and words are what really speak to my soul (and it’s home, which is also France).
    I’d rather be in a French cafe sipping coffee and watching the world go by than just about anywhere else at the moment.

  15. bramble

    Cafe life is timeless, yet of the moment as I spied the Vegetarian plate on the menu! Atleast we know you ate well! Have a lovely visit!

  16. Corey, your photos are so beautiful! I want to join the three of you and sit at that cafe 🙂

  17. Oh for a cafe like that on a dreary rainy day…
    I posted late on Annie’s birthday wall but see I wasn’t alone!

  18. I was in Paris and never once did I do the cafe thing. Now I know I missed out on something essentially French. Thanks for setting me straight. 😉

  19. One of these days I would like to sit in a cafe for as long as I want only sipping coffee. Sheesh, I recently went to a restaurant near where I live and after one hour with food still on our plates but we were talking instead of eating, the bus boy came and cleared our table without asking and even sponged it down as if to silently yell, “GET OUT!” We were one of only three tables occupied in the entire place…not like they were busy. America would do well to learn something from the French!

  20. patty g

    Stunning, inviting warm looking spaces and I can smell the aroma, and sit and watch the world go by, almost!

  21. jend’isère

    Your words and photos evoke being surrounded by sounds and smells. Expresso machines steaming, cups clinking, lively voices. Musty leather, newspapers, arabica, croissants, pastis, perfumed women with poodles have pushed the odor of cigarettes to the terraces.

  22. I have always known that when I finally make my trip to France I will be spending a great deal of time in cafes. It sounds like my kind of place =D

  23. I can now proudly say – I’ve lived that French moment and it was WONDERFUL. I’m ready to do it again.

  24. Ah, Corrie, I know that the brocante is your swoon-maker, but this, this reverent homage to dark, mystical, magical coffee, coffee being sipped in a solid white mug, at a cafe with no clock, watching the world slowly move by.
    You have caused me to go into a slight faint :-), yes, a swoon.
    Thank you!! It’s a joy to know that such a place exists.

  25. When I was 5, and the door bell rang, my Mom expected me to go to the kitchen and start the water for fresh coffee…and did they come to the kitchen to get it? No no, we were taught how to serve it to them on a tray! I still do that today, and my grand daughters to come will too!

  26. Just one question…how do I become a cousin??

  27. Corey, it was sublime just to sit chatting at that outdoor café in Cassis earlier this month — even though neither of us drinks coffee, and Farmboy Husband likewise opted for a cold drink!

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