American Things I Find Ridiculous As A French Person

Free AI web copilot to create summaries, insights and extended knowledge, download it at here

2719

Abstract

ting the sometimes overly intense alcohol. But for soda, for iced coffees, it’s the opposite. The more it melts, the more disgusting it becomes!</p><p id="facc">I know Americans have innovative ideas. I hope that one day they will come up with solutions like soda ice, juice ice cubes, coffee ice cubes, or other things to make any drink fancy and fun to drink. If this is replaced, I won’t think of it as a scam anymore.</p><figure id="725a"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/0*whRWbmFfKyzmO3vn"><figcaption>Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@pawel_czerwinski?utm_source=medium&utm_medium=referral">Pawel Czerwinski</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com?utm_source=medium&utm_medium=referral">Unsplash</a></figcaption></figure><h1 id="9fdb">A potion with flavor</h1><p id="9406">I’m a big fan of coffee. I drink mine without sugar or milk, and I like to buy beans of different origins to taste and compare the difference. Depending on how you make coffee — with a French press, espresso, or filtered — even with the same beans, you get really different drinks. Just by drinking it black, there is so much flavor to explore.</p><p id="ad5e">One of the first times I met my now-in-laws, my father-in-law had made coffee with a French press. I noticed that the French press was very common in the U.S., and I was happy since I like to drink French press coffee. There I was with my father-in-law, early in the morning, looking forward to discussing over a good coffee to know him better. I had two great cultural shocks at that very moment.</p><p id="17fb">He asked me if I wanted creamer in my coffee. I didn’t know what it was. I imagined that creamer was those single-serve containers you see in coffee shops. He takes a bottle out of the fridge. The creamer contained the same thing as the little container I was imagining but in a bottle! I refused since I drink my coffee black. Out of curiosity, later in the day, I looked up what was in the creamer. The answer? Water, sugar, and vegetable oil. Isn’t milk supposed to be the main ingredient? As I asked around, I was even more confused, and even today, creamer is a mystery to me.</p><p id="ba1b">I sit on the terrace with my father-in-law with a cup of coffee in my hand. The context was perfect for enjoying coffee. The morning in the countryside with the calm and fresh air, with the coffee generating steam. We start conversing. With the tiredness of the morning, we don’t exactly know what to say, and the calmness arrives very quickly. I drink a sip of my coffee to fill the silence. And there, another cultural shock hits me. I had never drunk a coffee with such a strange taste! I could taste the bitterness and ac

Options

idity of the coffee, but with such an intense smell that stung my nose, my instinct recognized it to be the taste of vomit. I had to spit the coffee out in front of my father-in-law and confess to him that I didn’t like the coffee. I didn’t make a good impression in front of him, but I also blame him for serving me a vanilla-flavored coffee. What is this culture of having flavored coffee in the U.S.? How do you guys drink this stuff? Why do you do that? The coffee is already good as it is. There is no need to add more flavor to a perfectly good thing! Please don’t add vanilla flavor, pecan, pumpkin, biscotti, pancake, or whatever flavor to ground coffee beans. Because of you, there will probably be other foreigners who will make bad impressions in front of their American in-laws.</p><p id="ebc2">I have plenty of other American things that I find ridiculous and others that are fascinating. I admire American culture. Even in terms of culinary culture, I think there is a certain aspect by which the French should be inspired. I love living in the United States, discovering other cultural shocks, and sharing them with you.</p><div id="affa" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/what-the-french-should-learn-from-american-cuisine-10c2e36566f8"> <div> <div> <h2>What The French Should Learn From American Cuisine</h2> <div><h3>The French know nothing about American culinary culture. Most would mention hamburgers or barbecue sauce, but their…</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*nhBdqh8_ufoDVkri)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="3ca7"><i>If you enjoyed this article and want to read my other work, remember to follow me! I also love reading your comments and personal experiences with cooking, food culture, and la vie gourmande! Merci!</i></p><div id="3c3f" class="link-block"> <a href="https://medium.com/@pierrebaguette/membership"> <div> <div> <h2>Join Medium with my referral link - Pierre Baguette</h2> <div><h3>Read every story from Pierre Baguette (and thousands of other writers on Medium). Your membership fee directly supports…</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*dK0W40KiMm5AC3Nd)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

American Things I Find Ridiculous As A French Person

I love American culture. I have had a lynch mob of culture shocks since I arrived in the US. I noticed the very warm customer service, compared to France, where no one wants to make conversation at the cash register. In France, we like to complain. In the US, we like to compliment others. There are so many surprises we see in the good of humanity in the U.S.

On the culinary side? Well, there is a lot to say. Many good surprises but also many shocks. I have listed the culinary shocks from my French point of view, the things that I find really ridiculous.

The scam that Americans don’t acknowledge

I always wonder how much we get ripped off at fast food or coffee shops. When I allowed myself to order at a fast food restaurant, I always asked for the no-fuss classic menus. But there was always one thing I took off the menu. And my American wife always judges me for it, telling me I’m not going to enjoy the meal.

I order whatever I’m drinking with no ice. I know that when I am served the drink, it is cold enough. I don’t need to drink it even colder than it is. Why add ice which will dilute the drink with water as time passes by between each sip? Why replace half the drink with solidified water? I always feel like I’m being ripped off when someone suggests adding ice cubes. And I know, coming from my American wife and from the opinions of all Americans, that ice is seen as fancy. Fancy? Really? That makes so little sense.

Folks, ice is simply water. It’s not fancy in any way. I understand that the debate of “how to make cereal? Milk first or cereal first?” is a pointless question to ask. It’s how I feel about the question, “Is it necessary to add ice to cold drinks?” It seems so obvious to me to answer! I understand that ice cubes are fancy in cocktails or liqueurs. Plus, by melting, the drink becomes more enjoyable to drink by diluting the sometimes overly intense alcohol. But for soda, for iced coffees, it’s the opposite. The more it melts, the more disgusting it becomes!

I know Americans have innovative ideas. I hope that one day they will come up with solutions like soda ice, juice ice cubes, coffee ice cubes, or other things to make any drink fancy and fun to drink. If this is replaced, I won’t think of it as a scam anymore.

A potion with flavor

I’m a big fan of coffee. I drink mine without sugar or milk, and I like to buy beans of different origins to taste and compare the difference. Depending on how you make coffee — with a French press, espresso, or filtered — even with the same beans, you get really different drinks. Just by drinking it black, there is so much flavor to explore.

One of the first times I met my now-in-laws, my father-in-law had made coffee with a French press. I noticed that the French press was very common in the U.S., and I was happy since I like to drink French press coffee. There I was with my father-in-law, early in the morning, looking forward to discussing over a good coffee to know him better. I had two great cultural shocks at that very moment.

He asked me if I wanted creamer in my coffee. I didn’t know what it was. I imagined that creamer was those single-serve containers you see in coffee shops. He takes a bottle out of the fridge. The creamer contained the same thing as the little container I was imagining but in a bottle! I refused since I drink my coffee black. Out of curiosity, later in the day, I looked up what was in the creamer. The answer? Water, sugar, and vegetable oil. Isn’t milk supposed to be the main ingredient? As I asked around, I was even more confused, and even today, creamer is a mystery to me.

I sit on the terrace with my father-in-law with a cup of coffee in my hand. The context was perfect for enjoying coffee. The morning in the countryside with the calm and fresh air, with the coffee generating steam. We start conversing. With the tiredness of the morning, we don’t exactly know what to say, and the calmness arrives very quickly. I drink a sip of my coffee to fill the silence. And there, another cultural shock hits me. I had never drunk a coffee with such a strange taste! I could taste the bitterness and acidity of the coffee, but with such an intense smell that stung my nose, my instinct recognized it to be the taste of vomit. I had to spit the coffee out in front of my father-in-law and confess to him that I didn’t like the coffee. I didn’t make a good impression in front of him, but I also blame him for serving me a vanilla-flavored coffee. What is this culture of having flavored coffee in the U.S.? How do you guys drink this stuff? Why do you do that? The coffee is already good as it is. There is no need to add more flavor to a perfectly good thing! Please don’t add vanilla flavor, pecan, pumpkin, biscotti, pancake, or whatever flavor to ground coffee beans. Because of you, there will probably be other foreigners who will make bad impressions in front of their American in-laws.

I have plenty of other American things that I find ridiculous and others that are fascinating. I admire American culture. Even in terms of culinary culture, I think there is a certain aspect by which the French should be inspired. I love living in the United States, discovering other cultural shocks, and sharing them with you.

If you enjoyed this article and want to read my other work, remember to follow me! I also love reading your comments and personal experiences with cooking, food culture, and la vie gourmande! Merci!