Glossary of Menu Terms:

There is little doubt that French cuisine is amongst the finest in the world. However, sometimes a French menu can be a bit confusing. It's easy to confuse tourteau (crab) with tortue (turtle) or ail (garlic) with alie (a poultry wing). So to avoid too much confusion, we've put together a few terms that you might want to check up on before you give your order.

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Abat(s) - Offal.

Abati(s) - giblet(s) of poultry or game foul.

Achatine - land snail.

Amourette(s) - spinal bone marrow of calf or ox.

Anguille - eel.

Béatille - 'titbit', dish combining various offal.

Bigorneau - periwinkle, tiny sea snail.

Bouilliture - eel stew with red wine and prunes.

Bulot - large sea snail or whelk, also called buccin.

Cargolade - a copious mixed grill of snails, lamb, pork sausage, and sometimes blood sausage cooked over vine clippings.

Cervelle(s) - brain(s), of calf or lamb.

Civet de tripes d'oies - a stew of goose innards, shallots, and garlic, cooked in wine vinegar and thickened with goose blood.

Coeur - heart.

Colère, en - 'in anger'; when, in the presentation of fish, its tail is inserted into its mouth to make it appear 'angry'.

Cornichon - gherkin, tiny bitter cucumber pickle.

Demoiselle de canard - marinated raw duck tenderloin; not to be confused with

Demoiselles de Cherbourg - small lobsters cooked in court bouillon and served in their cooking juices.

Dodine - cold, stuffed poultry which has already been boned.

Ecornet - small illex squid, also known as calamar.

Escargot petit-gris - small land snail.

Foie de veau - calf's liver.

Foie gras d'oie (de canard) - liver of fattened goose(duck).

Foudjou - strong smelling goat's cheese blending pepper, garlic, salt and brand with fresh and aged grated cheese.

Frémi - literally meaning 'trembling' and often applied to barely cooked oysters.

Fritons - coarse pork rillettes or minced spread which includes organ meats.

Fritot - small organ meat fritter.

Gésier - gizzard.

Gibelotte - fricassee of rabbit in red or white wine.

Goret - young pig.

Gousse d'ail - clove of garlic.

Gras - fatty.

Hareng - herring, "...baltique" -marinated; "bouffi" - salted; "..pec" - freshly salted; "saur" - smoked.

Hure de porc - head of pig.

Langouste - clawless spiny lobster or rock lobster; sometimes called crawfish and, mistakenly, crayfish.

Langoustine - clawed crustacean, smaller than langouste with very delicate meat. Known in British waters as Dublin Bay prawn.

Langue (de chat) - "cat's tongue"; thin, narrow, delicate biscuit (often served with sorbet or ice cream).

Magret de canard - breast of fattened duck.

Mi-cru - half raw.

Mi-cuit - half cooked.

Museau de porc - snout of pork, vinegared.

Non compris - service charge has not been included on listed menu prices; however, check the bill it's not unusual to find that it's been added anyway.

Oreille de porc - cooked pigs ear, served grilled, with a coating of egg and breadcrumbs.

Perce-pierre - samphire, edible seaweed.

Piech - poached veal brisket stuffed with vegetables and herbs.

Pied de cheval - "horses foot"; giant Atlantic coast oyster.

Porchetta - young pig stuffed with offal, herbs and garlic and roasted.

Poulpe - octopus.

Ris d'agneau (de veau) - lamb (veal) sweetbreads.

Rognonnade - veal loin with kidneys attached.

Salicorne - edible seaweed.

Sangue - Corsican black pudding, usually with grapes or herbs.

Tapenade - a blend of black olives, anchovies, capers, olive oil and lemon juice.

Tripoux - mutton tripe.

Vessie, en - cooked in a pig's bladder (usually chicken).

A German Perspective on Surviving Food in a Foreign Country
courtesy of Andreas Mehlhorn
 

English -	Mc Donald's
German -	Mc Donald's
French -	Mc Donald's
English -	Quarterpounder Cheese
German -	Hamburger Royal mit Käse
French -	Royale Cheese
English -	Big Mac
German -	Big Mac
French -	Big Mac
English -	Whopper
German -	Whopper
French -	Whopper

An Alternate [ Australian ] Perspective...