A key food culture difference between France and the US is the American concept of “spread”. Holiday meals are usually served all at once, with all the courses “spread” on the table in a visually impressive display that doesn’t tell you much about the quality of the food itself.
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Hypolite Petovan
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•My remark about the quality of the food was poking at the fact that spreads seem to be meant to be appreciated for their aggregate property, not for the individual courses composing them.
In the US I’ve heard guests praising “the spread” before taking any bite, which for me is a strong hint the quality of the food isn’t the priority of the practice.
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•Many other cultures have this kind of meal presentation, whether in Africa or Asia where there aren't any formal course order, but the US is the only one that I know of that has this specific concept of "spread".