Why French people take so much time to eat ?
What if... they were right ?
Bonjour, it’s Théo 👋
French people don’t have the reputation to be the fastest people in the world. The cliché we have of a Frenchie is someone sitting at a restaurant, enjoying his café-crème and croissant while reading the newspaper.
And this cliché… is a little bit true ! 😅
French people love to take their time when they eat. French meals have multiple courses and rituals to follow to truly enjoy it.
A faster world
With globalization, people tend to schedule their time to be more and more productive, and French people don’t do it differently.
It’s been a few decades that the American business TV shows inspire French people to be the new Wolf of Wall Street. 💰
During the 80’s and 90’s, we lost this culture of slowing down, taking the time to eat and to truly appreciate a social moment with friends and family.
People were cooking less and less at home, and we tried to find the fastest lunch possible : McDonald’s, sandwiches, pokebowls, or even ‘smart food’ like smoothies with nutrients.
The art of French homecooking were losing a few bases.
The delusion of fast nutrition
Since the expansion of social media, the things changed a lot.
People started talking about their mental health, the lack of communication in our society, and the despair to see things going faster and faster.
In this overwhelming world, some people tried new hobbies. They started to share their work at home, their passions or the way they cook !
As results of quarantine during 2020, people understood that they need to focus more on themselves, their health and what they love.
What if French people were right ?
While the world were spinning faster, some French people were still following old traditions by taking 2-hours lunch break and avoiding bad fast food restaurants.
I think that slow eating, taking the time to cook and to truly appreciate the moment are some important foundations of a healthy life.
For the next months on my social media, I want to share more about French rituals and traditions around food and social life.
I truly think it can be the solution of an overwhelming lonely life. Sharing a meal with friends, taking the time to self care : that’s what we need to focus on.
If we want to live better, we need to eat better.
And for that, we need to do it ourselves : home cooking, organization, learning to appreciate the good healthy stuff.
I have so many things to share so don’t forget to subscribe to @frenchguytheo on TikTok and Instagram ! 😉
Together, we can build a healthier world with love, self-care and taste ! (never forget the pleasure or a good meal !)
See you in Paris and/or online,
À bientôt 👋
Théo