This page will help you become a genuine Lyonnais!
To feel at ease in a bouchon, this culinary glossary will help you understand how to speak Lyonnais.
B for…
Bugne: a doughnut-shaped pastry.
C for…
Clapotons: sheep or lamb feet cooked in a vinaigrette or rémoulade sauce.
D for…
Doigts de mort (Fingers of death): peeled salsify.
G for…
Galope-chopine: used to describe someone who likes to call into bouchons.
M for…
Matefaim: sort of thick pancake which mate la faim (satisfies hunger), hence its name.
O for…
Os de china: pig’s tail.
P for…
Poule grasse (fat hen): popular name of lamb’s lettuce.
R for…
Rosette: pure pork cured sausage stuffed into pink casing.
Lyon sayings derived from cuisine. Here’s a small selection:
- Il vaut mieux mettre son nez dans un verre de Beaujolais que dans les affaires des autres (It is better to stick your nose in a glass of Beaujolais than in other people’s business).
- Tant qu’on n’a pas croqué la pomme, faut pas appeler une femme mon trognon (As long as you haven’t taken a bite of the apple, it is better not to call a woman ‘my core / my sweet’).
- Pour que le vin fasse du bien aux femmes, faut que ce soyent les hommes qui le boivent (For wine to benefit women, it is men who need to drink it) .
- Au travail, on fait ce qu’on peut, mais, à table, on se force (At work, you do what you can but when you’re eating you need to excel).
Now that you are an expert in speaking Lyonnais, can you guess the meaning of the words in bold?
It is not hard to choose between a fenotte and a good mâchon. Gone, don’t hesitate.
Be wary of the last pot, as it’s always the one that gives you gorgosson.
Answers :
- Fenotte: woman.
- Mâchon: traditional early morning meal based on pork products taken by the Canuts (silk workers) after work.
- Gone: child.
- Pot: unit used to measure liquids. In this case, refers to the wine carafe.
- Gorgosson: heartburn, gastric reflux.