French phrase help please

[Gandalf]

I just just wondering if any French speakers could give a few last minute survival tips.  Last time I spoke any French was for my GCSE back in 1974.  Any phrases I can remember now are of the Del Trotter variety.

I'm off to Normandy for the weekend, courtesy of a birthday surprise from my wife.  The problem is I am vegan and I'm not terribly optimistic about getting anything to eat.

Are there any short, simple phrases that might explain my plight?  Most of the ones I have found seem longer than the Gettysburg address.

[Julian]

Je suis végétalien

Je suis végétarien strict

both mean "I'm a vegan."

Whether the person you're talking to will understand what veganism is, I can't tell you.

Je ne mange ni la viande, ni du lait, ni le fromage, ni les oeufs

might suit better.

[delthebike]

Still time to watch Pink Panther films and Allo Allo and don't forget to shrug those shoulders!   

[JohnP]

Je pense que je peux être dans le mauvais pays.

 

Sorry, I know it is a real problem that I (as an omnivore) haven't experienced.

[hellymedic]

I have been told by a former vegan that the French have no concept of veganism and she had to eschew it to prevent starvation.
 

[Hot Flatus]

je mange seulement de la viande crue.

[Julian]

[hellymedic]

je mange seulement de la viande crue.

Vous êtes tres méchant.

[Eccentrica Gallumbits]

You are going to struggle. Seriously. They don't understand vegetarianism, let alone veganism. I manage because I'm veggie and I love cheese, but I suspect you're going to have a lot of green salads.

[Greenbank]

Even if they do understand the words they may not understand the concept.

I've witnessed fluent French speakers ordering a vegetarian salad only for it to arrive with ham/lardons on. The explanation from the waitress: "Ham is not meat."

[Eccentrica Gallumbits]

Pasta and tomato sauce could be your only option.

[Gandalf]

je mange seulement de la viande crue.

Very droll.

[Martin]

vegetarianism is very slowly caching on in France; mainly "ethnic" as it's probably a National Shame to admit to not eating Steack Tartare. There are ready meals for veggies in hypermarches, but I imagine the concept of no dairy products is too left field for them to take on board. I tend to go for things which couldn't possibly be fried in lard mainly pizza/ pasta. France is one reason I eat fish.

if living out of shops avoid anything with graisse animale plus the usual eggs / dairy products.

[Eccentrica Gallumbits]

Thing is, it's not just no dairy - it's no honey, no gelatine, no isinglass, no rennet, no animal products at all in the ingredients, cooking process, anything. I have vegan friends and I'm constantly in awe of how much effort they have to put into finding substitutes, and how difficult it can be for them to eat out.

[agagisgroovy]

Damn! Mon livre ist dans mon locker!

Last unit we were taught what to say on an exchange trip, and we got told to say something like Je suis vegitarian(ne). The word for vegan is végétalien, so you would say Je suis végétalien. Maybe Je ne mange pas viande, which means I don't eat meat, or Je ne mange pas viande ou les prouduits de viande ou crémerie (I don't eat meat or meat products or dairy). It all sounds a bit long winded but this is French, after all....   

[rogerzilla]

Frites, s'il vous plait.

[Martin]

Frites, s'il vous plait.

en huile vegetale;

sans Mayonniase Moules et Biere Belge

[Julian]

How prepared are you to turn a blind eye to, for example, what things have been cooked in?

On PBP, I got thoroughly told off by the French riders and their support guys for making beans on toast for those who wanted them.  I explained that it was for vegetarians, and I was told that even if they don't eat meat, I could at least put some lardons into the beans...

A vegetarian in France IME can also mean "won't eat lumps of animal muscle, but will eat lardons, poultry and fish."

[Mr Larrington]

Deux bières, s’il vous plaît. Mon ami va payer.

[bobb]

My sister used to be a veggie before she came to her senses. The way she got round it in Europe was to explain that she had an extreme allergy to any animally type stuff and that if her food contained any, she would be requiring an ambulance, or worse - investigators would be asking the owners why one of their customers had died in their premises.

Noses were turned up, but apparently it was a successful tactic.

My French is too rubbish to attempt a suitable phrase for this!

[Martin]

How prepared are you to turn a blind eye to, for example, what things have been cooked in?

not at all; animal fat is the worst crime imaginable IMO; when Mc Dogburgers announced they were going to continue frying chips fries (they can't be chips as they aren't potato) in lard there was an outcry by everyone apart from the hardened dead animal brigade and they eventually relented

Even Wimpy came in for stick for using the same (vegetable) oil to cook their beanburgers as the fish.

no idea about Harry Ramsdens who used to reckon chips aren't chips unless cooked in lard; wouldn't buy it anyway out of principal

I gave up eating in the PBP controls after about day 2 because of the appaling lack of anything useful for veggies.

Rancid boiling lard in chip shops makes me heave

[tiermat]

fries (they can't be chips as they aren't potato)

Urban myth, they are made from spuds, and are made by McCains...

Back on topic I used to work in a chippy and the number of students that came in asking what we cooked our chips in was manyfold.  This being in the frozen north finding a chippy that didn't use dripping to cook the chips was impossible, AFAIK there was none in that town that cooked the chips in veg fat...

[pcolbeck]

In the North East there is a Colbeck's Beef Dripping company !  Nice to see the family name employed for such a glorious food stuff.

[Seineseeker]

Liz had it about right, but you might need to back it up when you say "pas de viande".

That means "pas de jambon, pas de poulet, pas de tous types de viande!!!"

Vegan is going to be pretty hard, since cheese will be out, you might survive on "salade, tomates, maïs, concombre, betterave" and of course "avec du pain", do you think you are ok with crossain and, pain au raison?

Lentiles? Though if you say that you will probably get jambon mixed in it.
Pomme de terre purré, but they put lots of butter in it.

In fact take food with you!

[Martin]

fries (they can't be chips as they aren't potato)

Urban myth, they are made from spuds, and are made by McCains...

maybe now but I thought they used to be maize starch, or was that their milk shakes?

funny you should mention students; veggi-ism is viewed by the marketing men as an adolescent and also predominantly female phase which people go through, the "recipe for love" ads by the meat marketing board were aimed at young women, "you won't get a bloke and keep him unless you feed him steak" according to a TV interview with one of their chief spokestwats.