Wherever you are in the world, daily talks include discussions about food (la nourriture). A well-stocked food vocabulary in French comes in handy when you are eating at a restaurant, buying groceries, or discussing what you will eat for lunch with your family members or friends.
Today, we’ll explore French food vocabulary and look at a list of common food phrases in French. You’ll be able to say specific foods, meal titles, and essential food-related verbs.
Check out these articles for more French vocabularies:
Things you'll find in this article
- 100+ French Food Vocabulary
- 1. Daily meals in French – Les repas de la journée
- 2. Meal-Related Words
- 3. Les fruits – Fruits
- 4. Les légumes – Vegetables
- 5. Les viandes et les volailles – Meat and Poultry
- 6. Les fruits de mer – Seafood
- 7. Les produits laitiers – Dairy products
- 8. Cuisines française – French Foods/Dishes
- 9. Bread – le pain
- 10. Les boissons – beverages, drinks
- 11. Les condiments – condiments
- 12. Other food products
- 13. Verbs and phrasal verbs for food in French
100+ French Food Vocabulary
1. Daily meals in French – Les repas de la journée
Le déjeuner, also known as lunch, is considered the most important meal of the day in France. Yet, the French typically consume three meals per day. There is an additional food break for those students who are in school.
Here are the French words for each meal of the day.
- Le petit déjeuner (7h-9h) – Breakfast
- Déjeuner (12h-14h) – Lunch
- Le goûter (16h-17h) – School snack
- Le dîner (19h-21h) – Diner
2. Meal-Related Words
Whether eating at home or out, you’re bound to come across the following terminology. Before you order something that goes against your dietary choices, make sure you know and understand these French terms!
- le menu – Menu
- le restaurant – Restaurant
- la restauration rapide – Fast food
- la salle à manger – dining room
- l’entrée – starter
- le plat principal – main course
- le fromage (optional – cheese
- le dessert – dessert
- la soupe – Soup
- la salade – Salad
- le végétarien – Vegetarian
- végétalien – Vegan
- sans gluten / sans lactose – Gluten/lactose-free
3. Les fruits – Fruits
Fruits are in the dietary recommendations of many countries. In France,they are sometimes called “mûrs” (ripe/mature) and other times “pas mûrs” or “verts” (not ripe/green).
And if you had to memorize just one verb associated with fruits, it would be “éplucher” (to peel).
- la cerise – cherry
- la fraise – strawberry
- l’orange – orange
- le pamplemousse – grapefruit
- la poire – pear
- la pomme – apple
- la rhubarbe – rhubarb
4. Les légumes – Vegetables
You can use these terms whether you like to consume them “crus” (raw) or “cuits” (cooked). A “crudités” or “vegetable platter” is a popular menu item in many restaurants (a plate with salad and raw vegetables).
Tomatoes and cucumbers are fruits that are considered vegetables in France, plus more vegetables and their French names.
- l’asperge – asparagus
- l’aubergine – eggplant
- la betterave – beetroot
- la blette – chard
- la carotte – carrot
- la cèpe – porcini mushroom
- le chou-fleur – cauliflower
- le concombre – cucumber
- la Courge – squash
- le Courgettes – zucchini
- l’épinard – spinach
- le fenouil – fennel
- la laitue – lettuce
- le mange-tout – snow peas
- le navet – turnip
- le petit pois – pea
- le panais – parsnips
- la pomme de terre – potato
- le poireau – leek
- le radis – radish
- la tomate – tomato
5. Les viandes et les volailles – Meat and Poultry
In France, a specialized meat store is known as “la boucherie” (similar to a butcher’s stall). The same shop will frequently sell “charcuterie” as well. These are the meats you’ll find in a boucherie in France.
- la bœuf – beef
- les oeufsv – eggs
- le poulet – chicken
- le poisson – fish
- le porc – pork
- le veau – veal
6. Les fruits de mer – Seafood
You can find seafood on the menus of restaurants, or you can purchase it at poissonnerie (fish shops). If you are traveling to the south of France and are interested in sampling some of the region’s most well-known dishes, the following items are likely to be on the menus of the restaurants you visit.
- le Cabillaud – cod
- le Calamar – squid
- le Crevettes – Shrimp
- le Gambas – large shrimp
- la Étrille – small crab
- les Huîtres – Oysters
- la Limande – sole-like ocean fish
- la Lotte – monkfish
- les Moules – mussels
- le Noix de St. Jacques – sea scallops
- les Palourdes – Clams
- la Seiche – large squid
- la Truite – trout
7. Les produits laitiers – Dairy products
Some of France’s most celebrated exports are Brie, Camembert, Roquefort, Bleu d’Auvergne, Munster, and Comté.
The nation’s love of cheese, however, does not represent the full extent of the dairy products to which it is devoted. The French have an insatiable appetite for any dairy product, whether it’s yoghurt, crème, crème fraiche, butter, or milk-based pastries.
Here’s how to say the above-mentioned dairy products in French.
- le beurre – butter
- le fromage frais: fresh cheese
- le lait: milk
- les yaourts nature: plain yogurts
8. Cuisines française – French Foods/Dishes
French cuisine is based on the principle that a few carefully chosen ingredients can be combined to create indelible, world-famous dishes.
In fact, UNESCO recognized the importance of French food to world culture by including it on its list of intangible cultural treasures in 2010. Read on to learn about and taste a few classic French cuisine on your next trip to France!
- Acras de Morue – codfish cakes
- Boudin noir – Blood sausage.
- Charcuterie – these are different cold cuts, cheeses, fruits,nuts and other food items artfully arranged in a board or tray. Usually served as an appetizer or snacks.
- Cassoulet – a hearty casserole made of white beans, confit of duck or goose
- Coq au vin – this is slow-cooked chicken in a mix of red wine, seasonings and vegetables
- Cuisses de Grenouilles – Frogs legs
- Friture – this refers to a plate of fried small fish or other seafood
- Galette – a crêpe made of buckwheat flour that originated in Brittany, Normandy and French Guiana.
- Grattons – these are crispy fried pieces of pork, like cracklings
- Oeuf en meurette – a dish that refers to poached egg in red wine sauce
- Pâté – a paste, pie or loaf filled with a forcemeat of pork, poultry, fish or beef
- Quenelles – a creamed fish or meat combination with breadcrumbs and a light egg binder that is moulded into an egg-like shape and then fried
- Ragoût – the stew of meat or vegetables.
9. Bread – le pain
Bread comes in different shapes and sizes, but the French and French cuisine are most closely connected with that particular staple.
Given that bread is a fixture in French cuisine and that baguette is the food item most French people miss when they travel, the cliches may have some basis in fact. Here are some of the most common French breads and how to say them.
- la baguette – baguette
- les biscottes – crispbreads
- la brioche – sweet bread
- le pain complet – wholemeal bread
- le pain céréale – cereal bread
- le pain de campagne – farmhouse bread
- le pain de seigle – rye bread
- un toast – toasted bread
10. Les boissons – beverages, drinks
In France, as in the rest of the world, a meal is not considered to be finished until the appropriate beverage has been consumed. Here is how to say the name of a few different beverages in French, ranging from hot chocolate to wine.
- chocolat au lait – hot chocolate
- jus d’orange – orange juice
- la bière – beer
- le café – coffee
- l’eau – water
- le thé – tea
- le vin – wine
RELATED READ: Water In French
11. Les condiments – condiments
Want extra cream in your coffee or mustard in your salad dressing? Here are the French words for some of the condiments and ingredients you’ll usually encounter at home or when dining out.
- la crème – cream
- L’huile – oil
- La mayonnaise – mayonnaise
- La moutarde – mustard
- Le poivre – pepper
- Le sel – salt
- la vanille – vanilla
- Le vinaigre – vinegar
12. Other food products
Is there pasta in France? Do French people eat rice? The answer is yes to both questions, and you’ll find the following food products in many French dishes and sold in markets as well.
- l’avoine – oat
- La farine – flour
- Les pâtes – pastas
- le quinoa – quinoa
- Le riz – rice
- la semoule – semolina
- Le sucre – sugar
13. Verbs and phrasal verbs for food in French
It will be very helpful for you to learn some verbs and phrasal verbs that you can use with French food vocabulary.
In this section, you will find a collection of popular French verbs that you can use when talking about food.
- Acheter à manger – to buy food
- Apporter à manger – to bring food
- Avoir faim – To be hungry
- Boire – to drink
- Consommer – to consume
- Déguster / savourer – to enjoy, to savor
- Déjeuner – to have lunch
- Dîner – to have dinner
- Faire à manger / Préparer à manger – to cook food
- Grignoter – to snack, to nibble
- Goûter – to taste
- Manger – to eat
- Petit-déjeuner – to have breakfast
Hi, I’m Christine – a full-time traveler and career woman. Although I’m from the Philippines, my location independent career took me to over 40 countries and lived in 4 continents in the last 10 years, including France. A self-proclaimed Francophile, I love everything France.