mmm yes, I'm afraid French gastronomy is overrated, never was really all that great to begin with, all that...from Irish and English folks on a Rugby forum, I mean, they've got to know their shiit
:lol: aaahlalala, you guys CRACK - ME - UP ! More connoisseur stories, please, PLEASE !! I'm all eyes (and smiles).
And
Olyy, I'm sure your parents live in France but, unfortunately, like all of us here have issues tolerating the very overrated, mediocre quality of food...surely one of the cons of living in France, ay...ah well. I guess it takes some getting used to...
and
das I disagree; although that sperm thing sounds awful but all Asians are obsessed by aphrodisiacs (everything they eat, they think makes them more manly); Japanese food is the only thing that's ever come close to being as rigorous technically as French gastronomy, or at least comparable. In fact, they're sort of the only two cuisines I'd call "gastronomy", in that they're so precise and take so much (and so many aspects) into account, they're really a science. Just the whole sushi family: along with the ginger, right amount of wasabi in the soya sauce, it's...without starting poetry, it's just a level above your regular restaurant meal.
But the Japs mix all 4 main flavors (sweet, sour, bitter, salty) within the courses, where in France we separate of course and also happen to have the best deserts in the world, no arrogance it's just too obvious to play false humility. "Dessert" isn't a concept they grasp so much in Asia, there are some in some countries, but they'll usually mix sweet and sour.
But for me, the difference in France (for my personal taste) is the pastries. In Norse mythology, they were the foods of the Gods, they were so delicate; and nothing comes remotely close to the stuff we eat here. I've tried other stuff, German, Belgian, even Italian lol, but the stuff we get here...forget about it, simply.
Chocolate too btw, everybody credits the Swiss and Belgians, and they have some of the best clearly, but the best is quite possibly French chocolate: guys like Pierre Hermé if you've heard of him, or many others. I watch a lot of documentaries and stuff about it, and they were explaining how Belgian and Swiss managed to sell that commodity better than us by creating affordable but still high quality products. "Jeff de Bruges" or others sell a lot, or even a Lindt, very high quality for such a commonly distributed product; but if you want the real thing, of course Belgium and Switzerland have terrific stuff, but we've simply got masterminds. Jean-Paul Hévin, Hermé, Valrhona, Michel Cluizel...