Emily In France Exclusive 🇫🇷 Things You Should Buy at the French Grocery Store

From the desk of an expat.

My French food tours tend to focus on market streets in Paris – spots like rue Montorgueil or rue Mouffetard or rue Cler. These streets are as picturesque as they are delicious, dotted with purveyors of everything from fish to meat to bread to, of course, cheese. And these days, with the diminutive size of both my kitchen and my fridge, they are actually where I do most of my grocery shopping.

But take it from someone who's lived in Paris for over 15 years: Sometimes, you just need to go to Franprix.

Paris boasts a host of supermarket chains, ranging from the tiny Proxi (expensive but open late) to the discount Aldi (home to 30-cent bread) to Monoprix (aka French Target). And in August, when so many of the smaller purveyors are closed, a supermarket can be your best bet for anything from picnic supplies to delicious (and relatively inexpensive) souvenirs. Here are the things I always make sure I stock up on, particularly before heading back across the Atlantic.

Image: Patricia M

1. Mustard

I got the opportunity, last year, to interview the last mustard maker in Dijon, and while his mustard is certainly always on my shelf, my go-to is actually a much more widespread brand: Amora. Amora and Maille are made by the same company (creatively dubbed Amora-Maille), and it’s the mustard of choice among many of my French friends, not to mention my American aunts, who have furnished their lakeside cabin’s shelves with empty mustard jars, designed to double as drinking glasses. I love Amora’s fine et forte line (the strongest, with the red label), but there’s also a more muted version with an orange label and a very mild version with a yellow label.

Image: CamFl2020

2. Flaky Sea Salt