Chapter 3: Café Food - From Croissants to Croque-Monsieur

French café food occupies a specific niche—neither restaurant cuisine nor fast food, but something essentially its own. The limited menu reflects spatial constraints and cultural expectations about what belongs in a café versus a restaurant.

The croissant reigns supreme among café pastries. A proper croissant—buttery, flaky, with honeycomb interior—provides textural pleasure beyond mere sustenance. The pain au chocolat offers chocolate-filled variation, while the pain aux raisins adds custard and fruit. These viennoiseries (Viennese-style pastries) ironically represent French breakfast more than Austrian.

The tartine—half a baguette spread with butter and jam—offers a simpler breakfast option. Its elongated form requires particular eating technique, breaking off pieces rather than attempting impossible full-length bites. The quality of each component matters: fresh bread, proper butter (doux or demi-sel according to regional preference), and real fruit jam.

Sandwiches in French cafés follow strict conventions. The jambon-beurre (ham and butter on baguette) represents platonic sandwich ideal—three ingredients in perfect balance. The mixte adds cheese (usually Emmental) to ham. The végétarien might include tomatoes, lettuce, and hard-boiled eggs. These sandwiches arrive simply wrapped in paper, not the elaborate constructions Americans expect.

The croque-monsieur deserves special recognition as the ultimate café hot dish. This grilled ham and cheese sandwich, topped with béchamel sauce and broiled to golden perfection, transforms simple ingredients into comfort food perfection. The croque-madame adds a fried egg on top, the runny yolk creating sauce. Served with small salad, it provides complete light meal.

Quiche appears in many cafés, usually lorraine (bacon and cream) or varieties featuring vegetables. Heated and served with green salad, it offers vegetarian-friendly option while maintaining French culinary identity. The quality varies dramatically—from industrial frozen versions to homemade excellence.

Salads in cafés tend toward composed rather than tossed varieties. The salade niçoise, parisienne, or chèvre chaud (warm goat cheese) provide substantial meals. Dressing comes properly emulsified, not bottled varieties. The French preference for dressed salads rather than dressing-on-the-side reflects confidence in kitchen competence.