Grocery Shopping

The sliced navel oranges leave saffron-colored stains on my paper napkin. These oranges have thin skins, characteristic of summer oranges, I presume, and they came from Spain. Many of the
Saint-Nectaire cheese, fragrant and runny

vegetables and fruits at the local Carrefour came from Spain. The same was true at the larger Monoprix, located next to the Place de la Comedie, near the center of town.


 The cheeses, however, were thoroughly French. Saint Nectaire, Tommette de brebis du Salagou, Pélardon, as well as the local Roquefort, were all readily available from supermarkets and cheese shops. 

 Why didn’t I buy from local shops? There was a farmer’s market
Fruit stand in Sète
up the street from my apartment, and I can only guess the quality was better than what I found in the chain stores. Anyone with half-decent French and experience buying from local stores will likely equate my shopping choice to eating at MacDonald’s, of which, by the way, I saw two in Montpellier and had no interest in visiting.

 I went because I knew I could use my credit card. It was a pain to have to hit up an ATM twice a day, so I tried wherever possible to use my credit card (a card with a chip is essential). I also liked the convenience. Carrefour was open until 8 p.m., whereas the fruit stand closed in late afternoon. Finally, there was the fact I didn’t have to embarrass myself with my crappy French.
Local red from Pic Saint Loup
Can of tiny, tiny peas - great with pasta! 
Duck terrine with Armagnac! Great with bread and salad to make a light dinner 
Duck and pork cassoulet, for when you need something heavier for dinner
Guess where this milk is made?
More cheeses. "A.O.P." ( apellation d'origine protegée) is a European
Union designation for regional cheeses and wines.
Goat's milk yogurt: bought it by mistake and learned to love it.

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