Le Supermarché

When video chatting with my family last month, one of the first things I was asked by my aunt was "Have you gone to the grocery store yet?" The answer to this question couldn't be adequately summarized with one simple "yes", so I've decided to dedicate a post to the intricacies of French grocery stores.

First of all, even though they're called supermarchés, there's nothing super about them. The supermarkets here are significantly smaller than those in the U.S., because not many people buy their produce from the grocery store. You get the cheese from the local cheese man, the fruit from the local fruit lady, and desserts from the local patisserie. While produce is available at the grocery store, "super"marchés are more a place to buy cereals, pasta, frozen goods, etc. (Speaking of Frozen goods, there's a store here called Picard, and they only carry frozen food. The store has nothing in it but chest freezers, filled with any food you could ever need. If someone opened one of these in America, they'd be rich).

Note the partially-opened Pepsi packaging

1. The soda aisle- When I first got here, I was amazed that you could just reach in the 6-pack of Coke and pull out one can and buy just that one at the cash register. After a couple months here, this has probably turned into my favorite thing about French grocery stores. I don't have my own fridge for storing a multi-pack of soda, so it works out perfectly that I can just buy one can at a time on my lunch break. I've gotten so used to it that I'm going to have to make a conscious effort back home to not tear open the packaging and take just one can at Kroger.

2. The chocolate aisle- yes, there's an entire section dedicated to chocolate- it's always such a tough decision what to get. We have about 20 minutes in between classes for lunch on Mondays and this is always the perfect opportunity to run to the grocery store with a few people, have everyone get a different chocolate bar, and share our flavors with each other. The chocolate selection is truly impressive. One can easily find types from all over Europe with very exotic flavors (like chili peppers inside the chocolate bar)

So. Much. Yogurt.

3. The yogurt aisle- aisle probably isn't the correct term. "Department" would be more accurate. Every time I go in the grocery store, I can't help but stare at the unbelievable amount of yogurt they have to offer. Ever wanted pistachio or honey flavored yogurt? France has got you covered. Every night, my host family eats plain yogurt and sweetens it with sugar for their dessert.

4. The chip aisle- while America's chip selection puts France's to shame (I don't know whether or not that's something to brag about... God bless the USA), the French certainly have a few interesting chip flavors. I've come across roast chicken flavored Lay's as well as these Mystery Lay's. Pringles are also pretty common here and they come in crazy flavors like ketchup and cheese-onion. We tried the cheese-onion ones in my photography class, and one pringle was stronger than ten Funyuns. It was an onion overload and no amount of gum could cure our horrible onion breath.

I feel like food is such a huge part of any country that you can really learn a lot about the culture just by browsing the grocery store. It's impossible for me to make a quick run to the supermarché because I always find myself wandering the aisles, marveling at the selections in front of me. When on Spring Break next week, I fully intend on roaming at least one grocery store in every country I visit.

In other news, I realized I hadn't had a pastry in a long time and felt that it was appropriate that I fix that right away. When my classmates don't know what to get at a patisserie, they always stick with the classic tarte au citron. I recently admitted to them that I hadn't tried one yet, and they just about paraded my head on a pike, French Revolution-style. I decided to give-in to the tarte au citron craze and am so glad I did! It was fantastic, and the lemon curd had a magnificently tangy flavor. I'll definitely be re-visiting this little treat before my time here is over :)

Affectueusement,

Katie