A Typical Dinner Buffenoir Style

Wednesday November 18

Ok, so living with a host family has been hands down the best part of being in France. We don't get to spend a lot of time together but I adore my family nonetheless. One of the most memorable parts of living with the Buffenoirs has been their classically french dinner parties, so I thought I'd tell you how it's done Buffenoir style.

Company usually arrives about 7:30, always carrying some sort of gift for the host, this evening it was my program director and his wife and one of our neighbors, which made for a party of 8. The night begins in the living room  (that night my dad had even built a fire in the fireplace) We sit in the living room, drinking either a sparkling white wine/champagne or sometimes an aperitif alcohol- always served in the appropriate glasses depending on what we're drinking :) Snacks are passed around and the only critera is that they be some sort of bread based snack. In the past I've had bread pieces with melted cheese, covered with foie gras, salty crackers, pretzel sticks etc. The drinking/eating/breaking of the ice in the living room usually lasts about an hour and half, so by the time we sit down to dinner it's nearly 9 pm.

My host parents always consider the seating arrangement very careful, intermixing men and women and students and adults- not like the American's exiling the kids to a kids table :)  The first course can vary a lot, that night it was greens covered in vinaigrette, a mini egg souffle and strips of smoked salmon. Bread is always passed around and must be kept on the table to the left side of your plate- don't worry about crumbs. The woman of the household is in charge of serving/refilling the water glasses while the man does the same for the wine. That night my dad brought out a double sized bottle- I think it's called a magnum- of wine that he had bought in 1985....props to drinking something older than I am. The second course was a spiced chicken vegetable stew that was served over rice. I don't know how they manage it but the conversation seems to cover nearly every topic, from something rather serious to a story that will have everyone in tears laughing. Next comes the dessert- apple compote filled puff pastries (a secret recipe of my host mom) served with vanilla ice cream. After all the dessert plates have been cleared come a round of coffee or tea for anyone interested. Next is some sort of an alcoholic digestif, depending on what my host dad decides to immerge from the alcohol cabinet. By this time we have spent nearly 2/2.5 hours at the dinner table and the party is moved back into the living room. A bit more conversation later and the goodbyes begin- it usually takes a good 30 minutes or so to make if from standing up and putting on coats to actually seeing the guests walk out the door. Overall it makes for some of the greatest 4 and even 5 hour evenings that I've ever had- full of warm conversation, great food and wonderful people who have so graciously welcomed me into their home.