French Dishes

Croque Madame

Croque-madame

A variation of the croque monsieur topped with a fried or poached egg. The runny yolk adds richness to the ham, cheese, and béchamel sandwich.

Croque Monsieur

Croque-monsieur

A hot French sandwich of ham and Gruyère cheese between slices of bread, topped with creamy béchamel sauce and grilled until golden and bubbly.

Croquembouche

A towering cone of cream-filled choux pastry puffs bound with caramelized sugar threads. A traditional French wedding dessert popularized by chef Antonin Carême.

Crème Anglaise

Crème anglaise

A classic French vanilla custard sauce made from egg yolks, sugar, milk, and vanilla. Served as a pouring sauce with desserts like île flottante and chocolate fondant.

Crème Brûlée

Crème brûlée

A classic French custard dessert of egg yolks, cream, sugar, and vanilla, topped with a thin layer of caramelized sugar that shatters with a spoon. Served chilled in a ramekin.

Crème Caramel

Crème caramel

A smooth custard dessert with a layer of liquid caramel on top, inverted when served so the caramel drips down the sides. Lighter than crème brûlée.

Crème Pâtissière

Crème pâtissière

A thick, rich French custard cream used as a filling in éclairs, tarts, mille-feuilles, and choux pastries. Made by cooking egg yolks, sugar, milk, and flour together.

Crêpes

Thin French pancakes from Brittany made with wheat flour, eggs, milk, and butter. Sweet versions are filled with sugar, jam, chocolate, or fruit. A beloved street food and dessert.

Crêpes Suzette

Elegant flambéed crêpes served with beurre Suzette — a sauce of caramelized butter, sugar, orange juice, zest, and Grand Marnier or Curaçao, set alight tableside.

Cuisses de Grenouilles

Cuisses de grenouilles

A French delicacy of frog legs, typically sautéed in butter with garlic and parsley, or lightly floured and pan-fried. Most associated with Burgundy and the Dombes region.

Duck Confit

Confit de canard

A classic preservation technique from southwestern France where duck legs are salt-cured, then slow-cooked in their own rendered fat until meltingly tender.

Entrecôte

A boneless beef rib-eye steak cut from between the ribs, popular in French bistros. Thin and well-marbled, ideal for quick high-heat cooking.

Escargots à la Bourguignonne

Escargots à la bourguignonne

Burgundian snails baked in their shells with a generous filling of garlic, parsley, and butter. One of France's most iconic appetizers, served with a crusty baguette.

Far Breton

Far breton

A dense, custard-like baked dessert from Brittany similar to a flan or clafoutis, studded with prunes (or sometimes other dried fruit). Simple and rustic.

Financiers

Small, rectangular French almond cakes made with brown butter, almond flour, and egg whites. Their name comes from their gold-bar shape, resembling the financial district.

Flamiche

A savory leek tart or pie from Picardy in northern France, made with buttery pastry filled with leeks, cream, eggs, and butter. Sometimes closed as a double-crust pie.

Foie Gras

Foie gras

A luxurious French delicacy of fattened duck or goose liver, served as a terrine, mousse, or pan-seared. Traditionally paired with toast and sweet accompaniments.

Fondue Savoyarde

Fondue savoyarde

A communal cheese fondue from the Savoie region made by melting a blend of alpine cheeses (Gruyère, Beaufort, Emmental, Comté) in white wine, served with bread cubes.

Frangipane Tart

Tarte frangipane

A French tart with a sweet pastry shell filled with frangipane — a rich almond cream made from butter, sugar, eggs, and ground almonds. Often paired with pear or apple.

French Onion Soup

Soupe à l'oignon

A rich, deeply caramelized onion soup topped with a crouton and melted Gruyère cheese, gratinéed until bubbly. A Parisian bistro staple with medieval origins.

Frisée aux Lardons

Frisée aux lardons

A warm French bistro salad of curly frisée lettuce dressed with a hot bacon fat vinaigrette and topped with crispy lardons and often a poached egg.

Galette Bretonne

Galette bretonne

A savory crêpe from Brittany made with buckwheat flour, traditionally filled with ham, egg, and cheese (galette complète). Buckwheat batter is naturally gluten-free.

Galette des Rois

Galette des rois

A puff pastry cake filled with frangipane (almond cream) eaten to celebrate Epiphany in January. Contains a hidden fève (charm); whoever finds it becomes the king or queen.

Garbure

A thick, hearty soup from the southwest of France (Gascony/Béarn) made with cabbage, root vegetables, white beans, and preserved meats like duck confit or ham.