Table of Contents:
BREAKFAST.
LUNCH.
SNACK / STREET FOOD.
DINNER.
SUMMARY.
Wines of Bordeaux. French Beers. French Spirits.
Ahhhh, to taste Bordeaux.
The cuisine of Bordeaux is a reflection of its surroundings. In a way, Bordeaux has water on three sides. The Garonne and Dordogne rivers separate regions within the area. The Atlantic Ocean delivers fresh seafood daily. The Arcachon Bay, an hour’s drive west to the coast, has more than 300 oyster farmers. Between them, they are responsible for over 10,000 tons of oysters each year.
So, the Bordelais must live on seafood alone, Oui? No!. Beef and lamb are significant players in the diet and on their menus. 90% of their wine production is red, so you need meat to serve with it. The major cow breeds here are boeuf de Bazas, the Blonde d’Aquitaine, and Simmental. These are quality beef breeds. You will also find Free-range chicken, turkey, pigeon, goose, duck, and other fowl on local menus.
Nearby Tastes
The Gascony area, which includes Bordeaux, also stretches to the Spanish border. In the south, patés, terrines, confits, and foie gras are prevalent.
The cuisine in Périgord descends from the peasants. It pulls from the richness of the soil. Wild mushrooms, like ceps and truffles, are popular. From the trees, they get walnuts and chestnuts. They stuff fowl and use scraps and fat for canning and preserving meats (confits). It is a hearty and filling cuisine. They use duck and goose fat for making confits, also in place of butter when frying to give foods a delicious taste.
Local fruits (besides grapes) and vegetables also benefit from the local soil.
Sweets are also a part of the Bordelais diet. Maybe due to sugar arriving at the port of Bordeaux from the colonies in the West Indies. I think they do them so well, and that’s why they are so popular.
So we are looking at fresh seafood, farm-raised meats, local fruits, and vegetables complementing one another. Southwestern France is “between” Spain and the rest of France, and benefits from its location. Taste Bordeaux and experience a joyful marriage of flavors, textures, and wine.
Then, add the local style for preparing these dishes, and you have Bordelais Cuisine.
Breakfast. (Petit Déjeuner)
Since the 1800s, breakfast all over France is coffee (espresso) or coffee with milk (au lait) and a piece of toast. Today, it may include a bread product (croissant) with butter and jam. Also, or in the place of coffee, there may be juice. For a country known for its cuisine, for its pastries, specifically for croissants, this is C’est tragique. (This is tragic).
The French do not have time to go out for breakfast (M-F), so they do with what is at home. As bakery goods do not have preservatives, they do not keep for much longer than a day.
Luckily on the weekend, they slow down and taste the chocolatines (pain au chocolat everywhere else in France). Lucky for us, there are cafes and boulangeries (bread), and patisseries (pastries) we can “des trucs” (stuff) our bellies.
Lunch. (Le déjeuner)
In France, this is always the big meal of the day, except on Mon – Friday. Unfortunately, the French are dining at their desk (ala American) more and more.
On the positive side, cafes and bistros still offer the four-course lunch as well.
Salads.
Salade Landaise is a local star of Bordelais Cuisine.
The basis is leafy greens with three essential taste elements: thin slices of smoked duck breast, a fatty foie gras, and sherry vinegar or balsamic. Most purists will (partially) agree on those items. There are as many “the ONLY way to fix this” recipes as there are chefs.
As a result, debates start with the addition of any of the following: asparagus, ham, cheese, corn, beans, or others.
One other thing most of them will agree on is that it goes well with Bordeaux red wine. Which one? You’re asking for trouble.
In short, a Salad Landaise comes from the Bordeaux area, and there are several variations. Try one.
Taste Bordeaux Local Cheeses.
Issau-Irati – is made with sheep’s milk, creating a slightly granular and rich cheese. You will taste nutty, grassy-sweet flavors that match well with Bordeaux red wine.
Rocamadour – comes from unpasteurized goat’s milk and is an A.O.C. certification cheese. When young, it goes well on warm bread or in a salad. As it ages, it can stand up to local wines.
Sandwiches.
There is no “Bordelais” sandwich. The sandwiches you find here you can find other places. The specific taste of local products, for instance, pate, will give any sandwich a unique regional twist.
Soups.
Anywhere in France, you can find “French” onion soup. Near the coastline, you will find various seafood bisques. In the Bordeaux area, you will find a few soups with a distinctly Bordeaux flavor.
Garbure
This mixture can be a soup or a stew. That depends more on its consistency at serving time. Perhaps, the amount of meat in it also separates the soup from being a stew. Like just about every French dish, it varies from one home to the next.
Similarities include simmering confit meats (often pork) along with an assortment of readily available vegetables. Beans, beets, cabbage, carrots, peas, potatoes, onions, turnips, and anything else not nailed down. Restaurants in Bourdeaux may place a tureen of Garbure on the table for guests to serve themselves.
Soupe aux Chataignes is a velvety cream soup with a whole lot of local chestnut puree going on. It is more of a cold-weather soup. (BACK TO TOP)
Taste Bordeaux Street Food.
There are an increasing number of fast-food/on the run (sur le pouce) places in Bordeaux. Unfortunately, they do not offer anything you cannot find a variation of in other cities.
For “local” street food, visit one of the city markets. Create your to-go menu. Every day except Monday, the largest market, Marché des Capucins is open. Shop or eat at one of the little cafes inside. What a great way to taste so many local flavors. On Sunday morning, check out Marché des Chartrons, along the river.
Dinner (Diner)
Perhaps they have big lunches because they do not eat the evening meal until later. Dinner after 9:00 pm is not unusual. Don’t fret; restaurants open much earlier for the rest of us. Knowing that the French eat bigger meals at lunch, I still list the following as dinner. These dishes are heartier, like an American dinner item.
Entrecote à la Bordelaise.
This entree is a taste Bordeaux is famous for worldwide. A rib cut steak they grill with butter and olive oil. The sauce (Bordelaise) is a combination of butter, shallots, beef marrow, local (Bordeaux) red wine, and a splash of brandy. They pan-fry potato cubes or fries in duck fat to accompany it. If you are going to taste Bordeaux, here is where you start.
From quality cattle come many other delicious beef entrees, but when in Bordeaux…
Agneau de lait (Lamb of Milk) de Pauillac.
The Pauillac lamb suckles on the milk of its mother for 75 days. Originally the lambs had to be living on the salt marshes around Pauillac. The area has spread, but the technique has not. This meat enjoys a protected geographical indication (P.G.I.) There are several presentations of the lamb, including chops, shoulder, and leg.
Taste Bordeaux Seafood.
Another taste Bordeaux is famous for is its seafood.
Eclade
Eclade is Bordeaux’s unique way of preparing mussels. The mussels go on water-soaked boards with the seams up. They cover them with pine needles or hay. Then they set them on fire. The fast, intense heat cooks them quickly. When the flame is out, you have hot mussels ready for eating.
Escargotsà la Caudéranaise.
Caudéranaise, once a separate village, is now part of Bordeaux. They are famous for their escargots, which they serve in several ways. One way is with garlic butter and wine. Another favorite is a casserole with wine, shallots, and country ham.
Lamprey Bordelaise.
The slow simmering of Sea Lamprey in red wine with Leeks, onions, shallots, and garlic creates a very tender dish.
Huîtres du Bassin d’Arcachon
Fresh oysters from the Bay at Arcachon are a treasure. Some do make their way into chowders and other dishes. The majority disappear with some lemon juice and a cold glass of white wine nearby. You can find them in Bordeaux, but they taste better by the bay.
Poultry
You may be thinking chicken, but this is Duck, Goose, Pigeon, and others.
Foie Gras.
They make this gourmet treat with the liver of a duck or goose. You will find it by itself, as a spread, fried, or on top of other items. It is undoubtedly a taste Bordeaux is well-known for having.
Confit.
This preparation is a centuries-old process of preserving meat by curing in salt, then poaching it in its fat.
Vegetables.
Asparagus coming from the Blaye region is a treat. It is white asparagus, which has more texture.
Les cèpes de Bordeaux – Cepes are local mushrooms, and this is a crepe with local mushroom filling.
Perigord Truffles – Hunting takes place in winter when the black truffles are ready for harvesting. Perigord, east of Bordeaux, is famous for its hazelnut and chestnuts. From the roots of these, and the oak, poplar, and birch trees grow the black diamonds known as truffles. They appear on Bordeaux tables soon after.
Taste Bordeaux Dessert.
Cannelés
These are a must-try taste Bordeaux has perfected. The caramelized brioche-style pastry is finger food size, making them dangerous as you may need more than one. It is a small cake full of vanilla and rum flavor.
Noisettes du Medoc.
They roast hazelnuts from the Medoc area. After heating, they roll the nuts in sugar.
Saint-Emilion Macarons.
Who invented the macaroon? Most people agree it was Ursuline nuns who could not eat meat. Where did they first start making them? This question is where it gets ugly. Several places lay claim to that title. In St. Emilion, in 1680, nuns begin baking the Saint-Emilion Macarons version. With just three ingredients (egg whites, icing sugar, and almond flour), it creates a sugar cookie with a cracked top. They do not make them into a cookie sandwich with a thin layer of ganache in between.
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Taste Bordeaux Summary.
How does a place with so much good food, wine, and culture stay off the map? Part of that is most people arrive in France at its only other competitor, Paris. There is so much to do/taste there; they miss all the other great French regions.
Bordeaux is a jewel in the wine and culinary worlds. It has always been a destination for those in the know.
Now you know. As a world traveler, you owe it to yourself to visit and taste Bordeaux.