The most popular French appetizers fall into two groups. On restaurant menus you will see classic starters (entrées) such as oysters, escargots, salade lyonnaise and baked Camembert. At home, the French serve small bites with the evening apéritif, or apéro: savory cake, gougères, socca, pissaladière, tapenade and a board of charcuterie and cheese.

Most are simple to make, which is the point: at an apéro the host should be chatting, not cooking. Below are the classics, where they come from, and how to serve them, whether you order them in France or make them for friends at home.

Apéritif vs entrée: a quick note on French terms

• Apéritif (apéro): drinks and small bites before dinner, often at home or on a café terrace. An apéro dînatoire is a generous apéro that replaces dinner.
• Amuse-bouche: a single bite offered by the chef before the meal in finer restaurants.
• Entrée: in France this means the starter, not the main course (which is the plat).

Classic French starters you will find on menus

Oysters (huîtres)

Oysters are a French favorite, usually eaten raw on a bed of ice with lemon, rye bread with butter, and a shallot and red wine vinegar sauce called mignonette. They are a fixture of Christmas and New Year’s Eve meals. The main producing areas include Marennes-Oléron, Arcachon Bay, Brittany (Cancale) and Normandy. If you buy them to serve at home, choose a trusted fishmonger and learn to shuck them safely with an oyster knife and a towel.

Escargots

Escargots à la bourguignonne are snails baked in their shells with garlic, parsley and butter. The classic way is to hold the shell with tongs, pull the snail out with a small fork, and mop up the butter with bread. Burgundy is the traditional home of the dish, and good delicatessens and frozen-food shops in France sell them ready to bake.

Salade lyonnaise

This Lyon bistro classic combines bitter frisée lettuce, crisp lardons, croutons and a soft poached egg, dressed with a sharp mustard and vinegar dressing, sometimes made with warm bacon fat. Breaking the yolk into the salad is part of the pleasure. Order it in a traditional Lyon bouchon.

Baked Camembert

Camembert is a soft cheese from Normandy. To bake it, remove the paper or plastic wrapping, put the cheese back in its wooden box (or a small ovenproof dish), score the top and bake for about 15 minutes until runny. Add garlic and thyme, or honey and walnuts, and serve with bread or potatoes for dipping.

Melon au Porto and melon with ham

In summer, half a Charentais melon filled with port, or melon with thin slices of cured ham, is a common simple starter. For an apéro, the same idea becomes brochettes: skewers of melon cubes, cured ham and small balls of fresh goat cheese.

Regional appetizers to try

Socca

Socca is a thin, crisp pancake made from chickpea flour, water, olive oil and salt, baked in a very hot oven and finished with plenty of black pepper. It comes from Nice, where it is sold hot as a street snack in the old town; it is a close cousin of Italian farinata. You rarely see it in Paris, so try it on the Riviera.

Pissaladière

Another specialty of Nice, pissaladière is a bread-dough tart topped with onions cooked very slowly until soft and sweet, then anchovies and small black olives. The traditional version has no tomato and no cheese, which sets it apart from pizza. Cut into squares, it is ideal for an apéro.

Tarte flambée (flammekueche)

Alsace’s famous tart is a very thin bread base spread with fromage blanc and crème fraîche, topped with onions and lardons, and baked in a hot oven. In Alsace it is often eaten as a main meal in winstubs, but cut into small pieces it makes an easy appetizer.

Gougères

Gougères are light cheese puffs made from choux pastry and grated cheese such as Comté or Gruyère. They come from Burgundy and are a classic with a glass of white wine or kir.

Tartines with fromage blanc

A tartine is a slice of bread with something spread on top. Fromage blanc is a fresh, soft cheese with a texture somewhere between yogurt and cream cheese. Mixed with herbs, shallots and garlic, it becomes the Lyon dip cervelle de canut, which is excellent on toasted bread.

Easy French apéro bites to make at home

Cake salé (savory loaf)

Cake salé is a savory loaf, usually with ham, olives, cheese or vegetables baked into a simple batter. It is a staple of home apéros because you can bake it the day before, slice it into cubes and serve it at room temperature.

Smoked salmon canapés

Spread small toasts or blinis with cream cheese or crème fraîche, add a piece of smoked salmon, a squeeze of lemon, black pepper and some dill. They take minutes and go perfectly with Champagne or another sparkling wine.

Ham and goat cheese rolls

Wrap a thin slice of dry-cured ham, such as jambon de Bayonne, around a small piece of fresh goat cheese and fix it with a toothpick. Each French region has its own cured ham, so this is a good way to try local products.

Zucchini rolls (courgettes roulées)

Slice zucchini lengthwise, grill or bake the strips briefly with olive oil, then spread with fresh cheese and roll around smoked salmon, ham or herbs.

Baked brie with pesto

Brie comes from the historic Brie region east of Paris, mostly today’s Seine-et-Marne, home of Brie de Meaux and Brie de Melun. Place a small brie in a baking dish, top with pesto and pine nuts and bake until soft. It is not a traditional French recipe, but it is a popular modern apéro dish.

Seared scallops on cucumber

Sear scallops in butter for a minute or two on each side, season and place each one on a thick slice of cucumber. It is a light, elegant bite for a dinner party.

Mini croque-monsieur

The classic Paris café sandwich of ham and cheese, often with béchamel, cut into small squares and baked. Children and adults both love them.

Charcuterie and cheese board

A board of saucisson, cured ham, pâté or rillettes, a few cheeses, cornichons, olives and bread is the easiest apéro of all. With enough on it, it can replace dinner. Our French cheese guide will help you choose the cheeses.

Other apéro classics

• Tapenade (black or green olive spread from Provence) on toast
• Pork or duck rillettes from the Loire and Sarthe
• Radishes with salted butter
• Saucisson sliced on a board
• Small bowls of olives, nuts and cornichons

What to drink with French appetizers

The classic apéritif drinks are kir (white wine with blackcurrant liqueur), Champagne or crémant, a chilled rosé in summer, and pastis in the south. See our guide to the most popular French drinks for more ideas, and our tips on how to host a French dinner party if you are entertaining at home. When you move on to the main course, our list of traditional French dishes has the classics.

Summary

French appetizers range from restaurant starters such as oysters, escargots and salade lyonnaise to regional bites such as socca, pissaladière, tarte flambée and gougères. For an apéro at home, keep it simple: a savory cake, a few canapés, a charcuterie board and a glass of kir or Champagne are all you need to start an evening the French way.