Wait. WHAT? What is an apéro? I’ve accepted my French neighbor’s invitation, but I have absolutely no idea what I’m supposed to do! Do I dress up, or go in jeans and a tee? Do I take something or go empty handed? Why did I say yes? Must’ve been too tired to comprehend what I was doing!
Here’s a post I hope will help all those that aren’t French and thus don’t know about French customs and norms. Those of you who are French or are well accustomed to the norms, I hope you like reading it anyway. (Also, please do tell me if there are any changes or additions; I’m always happy to know more!) (UPDATE: I am going to write this in French as well, so stay tuned!)
I’ve always wondered what I’m supposed to do. I mean, speaking the language is okay, but you have to really know and understand the French customs. So basically an apéro is what we, in English, call an aperitif (well, I think we’ve taken it from the French, haven’t we?). Not dinner, no. A sort of pre-dinner ‘do’.
I’ve been called over to my neighbors’ a couple of times in the last month and I’ve always been really scared (yes, you read it right!) about what to take. I have zero knowledge of wines – which one for what occasion, which one with what food, etc. So wine is out of the question. Do I take snacks? What kind? Chocolates? Flowers? WHAT?
I looked up (or Googled. Yes, I use it as a verb 😉 ) some things that might help me, and I thought, why not help fellow confused-minds too? Here goes:
- This site lays down the rules pretty well. Straightforward and easy to understand.
- This one here explains pretty well what you should expect when you go to a person’s house. Don’t expect to be shown around the whole house, don’t go the kitchen unless asked to, and a Sunday invitation means the whole afternoon (I love that about them 😀 )
Long lunches with the French got me like
- A discussion about what the invités (guests) should do when invited to an aperitif.
- Nessafrance writes about the general norms that apply to an apéro invitation- what to talk about, most importantly.
- Another discussion– a desperate call for help from the WWW!
- Geraldine also gives you ideas you ideas on what you can take.
How many things can I take?
- I love how she’s written about her experience as a whole- I think it’s really great that she’s given us a bit of background on her life!
- And the last tip I’d give you is to ask your hosts outright (nicely, of course) what you can bring. This lets them know you’re not used to this and then you might be excused even if you slip up a bit. But be sure to ask beforehand, not when you arrive! 😉
So I think with these rules in your repertoire, you’re ready to go apéro-ing!
I shall have the French version up soon, I think. Is there anything else you’d like to add to the list? Any advice you’ve heard? Let me know in the comments below! 🙂
A bientôt! (See you soon!)
Kanchan
(For those interested in the info, I used the GIFs from giphy.com)
The Girl With A Recipe 