Duck for Lunch

The more time I spend in France the more I realize the French take their lunch very seriously. Almost every store, office, and bank closes from 12pm till 2pm so the employees can have a two hour lunch break. You may wonder how lunch can take two hours but when lunch includes three courses and multiple glasses of wine, time flies. The American concept of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or salad for lunch would not work in France. I finally experienced the two hour lunch at a cute little cafe. Most restaurants do not offer a menu with a list of dishes but rather a plat du jour (plate of the day) and that is your only choice. The plat du jour was listed in French so I had no idea what I would be eating but hoped it would be good. To my surprise, I was given a duck leg on top of a bowl of pasta with some type of cream sauce. I have not figured out what was in the cream sauce. It was similar to an Alfredo sauce but thinner and less flavorful, no garlic or Parmesan. It may have been just reduced cream. All in all, it was a very good lunch and it did take me two hours to eat!