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Post by cernunnos on Oct 20, 2023 8:13:07 GMT 1
Me neither , but most of the local businesses around where we live are closed for two hours for lunch, but they are also open until 19:00.
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Post by houpla on Oct 20, 2023 8:22:34 GMT 1
Might I be so bold as to suggest that perhaps even French people are getting peckish outside of the proscribed national nosh time between 1200 and 1400? This might explain at least some of the popularity of pizza machines, fish & chip vans as well as Chinese and Indian food doing so well at markets, etc. Just an opinion. That's where the rot starts, A. Snacking. Isn't pizza one of the highest-calorie 'foods' known to man? The results are certainly making themselves obvious here in the SW. I've never seen so many huge, French adults and children as I did this summer. The other worrying trend is that youngsters are taking up smoking as a form of weight control
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Post by annabellespapa on Oct 20, 2023 8:23:18 GMT 1
We were only discussing this with our French neighbours a few weeks ago, 25 years ago, pizzas were virtually unheard of in French supermarkets and restaurants outside the big cities but pizzas and pasta were so cheap to put together compared with a French meal made from scratch that it quickly took off, our little French village (1400 inhabitants) has two Italian bistro/pizzeria type restaurants along with two traditional French and would you believe it a Vegan restaurant that is run by British, it has been there for a least two years so either they have big pockets or it is doing OK. p.s In summer there is also a wood fired mobile pizza van that comes once a week. True to a point but in 1994 we opened our campsite and the two most asked for snacks were Burgers and Pizzas, the latter were bought from Metro and with the use of a pizza oven we did a roaring trade. Simple and easy we bought the basic pizza's and added to them. Now I can only speak for ourselves and our wholesaler and can't speak for all of France of course. I think I know the vegan restaurant, we've been there for vegetarian curries? I have to agree with you, people were on holiday and would want anything different from what they ate normally, especially children, we used to have camping holidays in the Dordogne and La Rochelle in the early 80's and apart from our nightly BBQ the camp owners did a pizza night, a burger night, us kids absolutely loved it. Anything for a change ! p.s The vegan restaurant is called The Crazy Carrot in Jugon Les Lacs, not eaten there but seems quite popular.
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Post by jeliecrack on Oct 20, 2023 8:26:20 GMT 1
Me neither , but most of the local businesses around where we live are closed for two hours for lunch, but they are also open until 19:00. Shops you mean? No enterprise I know of closed for 2 hours a lunchtime.
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Aardvark
Non-gamer
Living in soggy 22 and still wondering what's going on.
Posts: 2,172
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Post by Aardvark on Oct 20, 2023 9:30:46 GMT 1
Someone does, judging by the number of shops and services that are closed between 12 and 2.
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Post by omegal on Oct 20, 2023 11:37:17 GMT 1
True to a point but in 1994 we opened our campsite and the two most asked for snacks were Burgers and Pizzas, the latter were bought from Metro and with the use of a pizza oven we did a roaring trade. Simple and easy we bought the basic pizza's and added to them. Now I can only speak for ourselves and our wholesaler and can't speak for all of France of course. I think I know the vegan restaurant, we've been there for vegetarian curries? I have to agree with you, people were on holiday and would want anything different from what they ate normally, especially children, we used to have camping holidays in the Dordogne and La Rochelle in the early 80's and apart from our nightly BBQ the camp owners did a pizza night, a burger night, us kids absolutely loved it. Anything for a change ! p.s The vegan restaurant is called The Crazy Carrot in Jugon Les Lacs, not eaten there but seems quite popular. Yes that's the one, Crazy Carrot proving to be popular, only hope it can go through the winter as the interior is not very large, in summer they have a decent terrace to cover more tables. Try it it is pretty good, my friend loves a burger, he tried the vegetarian burger and swore it was as good a normal burger. Both my Wife and I like the curries they make. Still seeing a lot of our joint friend (he of the first and original actual fish and chip shop in Brittany) as we have a resto not far from us which offers very good fish and chips.
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Post by omegal on Oct 20, 2023 11:49:50 GMT 1
We don't rate pizza as food. We tried to get a pizza from the new shop just after it had opened and were told there was a 3 hour wait , not been back since. Prefer standard " french " food. Another reason to be grateful we live in France. Not sure after more than thirty long years here in France I know what standard "French" food is? In Provence it was doifferent to the Doo Don and here in Brittany we live close to the coast so of course sea food is found but sea food can be found almost anywhere near the coast in the World. A true Italian Pizza ranges from anything goes, a place in Naples has over 200 varieties. For me a little place on the French, Italian border was a pizza resto that made very thin base pizzas just how I like them. Here in Brittany only once have I found one almost as good and that was on a campsite near Guidel plage where a mobile pizza van called one Friday night, thin base plenty of variety as a topping. Like any food, generalising of a type of food is just a question of where, what and how. I admit a good pizza (of which I am not much of a fan) has been difficult to find but then I rarely seek out a pizza tbh.
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Post by annabellespapa on Oct 20, 2023 11:56:19 GMT 1
I have to agree with you, people were on holiday and would want anything different from what they ate normally, especially children, we used to have camping holidays in the Dordogne and La Rochelle in the early 80's and apart from our nightly BBQ the camp owners did a pizza night, a burger night, us kids absolutely loved it. Anything for a change ! p.s The vegan restaurant is called The Crazy Carrot in Jugon Les Lacs, not eaten there but seems quite popular. Yes that's the one, Crazy Carrot proving to be popular, only hope it can go through the winter as the interior is not very large, in summer they have a decent terrace to cover more tables. Try it it is pretty good, my friend loves a burger, he tried the vegetarian burger and swore it was as good a normal burger. Both my Wife and I like the curries they make. Still seeing a lot of our joint friend (he of the first and original actual fish and chip shop in Brittany) as we have a resto not far from us which offers very good fish and chips. Omegal, do you mean Bill, I forgot you knew him, what a lovely man, we haven't seen him for a few years since my Mom died who lived in Tenerife when Bill and Joyce had an apartment cleaning company there. I will get in contact with him today, as we arrive in France on Monday, you weren't part of the crowd who used to meet up in the bar in St Samson on a Friday lunchtime for a game of pool and the plat de jour, as I turned up occasionally. We have a house overlooking the lake at Jugon and have never been to the Crazy Carrot, which is only 5 minutes walk away so we will give it a try, we know Jo G who owns it when she lived at Crehen, thanks for the recommendation !
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Post by omegal on Oct 20, 2023 13:09:49 GMT 1
Yes that's the one, Crazy Carrot proving to be popular, only hope it can go through the winter as the interior is not very large, in summer they have a decent terrace to cover more tables. Try it it is pretty good, my friend loves a burger, he tried the vegetarian burger and swore it was as good a normal burger. Both my Wife and I like the curries they make. Still seeing a lot of our joint friend (he of the first and original actual fish and chip shop in Brittany) as we have a resto not far from us which offers very good fish and chips. Omegal, do you mean Bill, I forgot you knew him, what a lovely man, we haven't seen him for a few years since my Mom died who lived in Tenerife when Bill and Joyce had an apartment cleaning company there. I will get in contact with him today, as we arrive in France on Monday, you weren't part of the crowd who used to meet up in the bar in St Samson on a Friday lunchtime for a game of pool and the plat de jour, as I turned up occasionally. We have a house overlooking the lake at Jugon and have never been to the Crazy Carrot, which is only 5 minutes walk away so we will give it a try, we know Jo G who owns it when she lived at Crehen, thanks for the recommendation ! Yes Bill, been a while since Joyce left us. No I never went to that bar to play pool, they also once used a bar in Le Tronchet, not far from the golf course of the same name to play pool (I play golf at Les Ormes) Bill called round (he is 100 metres from us in the commune) to give us the last of his Rhubarb crop. A few of our friends like the Crazy Carrot as they are vegetarians and we know how hard a decent veggie resto is to find for them. Getting back to Bill as you know it has been at least 30+ years since Bill and Joyce were in Tenerife, their friends there (and here) Alex and Jean have both passed on since. Bill still helps out or at least goes to the church in Dinard where Joyce once run a Sunday School for kids. Do try the Crazy Carrot.....
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Post by cernunnos on Oct 20, 2023 14:14:45 GMT 1
Me neither , but most of the local businesses around where we live are closed for two hours for lunch, but they are also open until 19:00. Shops you mean? No enterprise I know of closed for 2 hours a lunchtime. No , I meant local businesses , the super-market in our village closes for 1.5 hours at lunch time, but the tractor repair/ builders yard/quincaillerie/ pharmacie all close for two hours and our local bank is never open!
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Post by jeliecrack on Oct 20, 2023 14:55:42 GMT 1
You mustlive in the back of beyond 😃😃
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Post by tim17 on Oct 20, 2023 15:18:35 GMT 1
You mustlive in the back of beyond 😃😃 Much of rural France operates like that, if businesses open Saturday morning they're usually closed on Monday to compensate, all part of the 35 hour working week culture.
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Aardvark
Non-gamer
Living in soggy 22 and still wondering what's going on.
Posts: 2,172
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Post by Aardvark on Oct 20, 2023 17:01:51 GMT 1
Back of Beyond? I don't know about Cernunnos but I'm closer to the edge of the Universe than to most signs that the 21st century has arrived. I can moan about things at Olympic level but it's only a personal failing. I experienced a similar culture shock when I first arrived in UK. All the shops shut at 5pm and many shut at lunchtime on Wednesday. Sunday shopping? Don't make me laugh. Everyone going to church? I doubt it. Given the restricted pub opening hours they weren't there either.
annabellespapa: Lamballe is over an hour's drive away (by motorway).
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Post by cernunnos on Oct 20, 2023 20:06:12 GMT 1
As posted earlier , we like living in a back water and certainly don't need to shop at lunch time nor lunch between meals ! HURRAY for the non-war zone !
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Aardvark
Non-gamer
Living in soggy 22 and still wondering what's going on.
Posts: 2,172
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Post by Aardvark on Oct 20, 2023 20:43:20 GMT 1
Different strokes for different folks. We don't like getting up early just to hopefully get all the stops done before things drop into the "black hole". Supermarkets staying open is a blessing because they are rarely crowded then and the queues are shorter. This is an issue when more and more places have so few "ordinary" checkouts these days. Instead they open self scan places where you are under the eagle eye of staff assuming everyone is a shoplifter. Special tills for this, that, and the other priority card or membership with nobody going through while the "normal" till is packed.
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