Talk:Poutine

Is "sacrée poutine" a French Canadian word (phrase) -- I don't find the word "poutine" in any of my 3 French dictionaries, including my 2-volume Larousse? Hayford Peirce 10:16, 19 November 2007 (CST)

Yes, as in the French quote, and its translation, in the article, Anglophone Canadians are routinely informed poutime=="mess". Cheers! George Swan 22:04, 23 March 2008 (CDT)

Potato fragments

Isn't poutine strictly served with french fries? --Robert W King 12:45, 19 November 2007 (CST)

I disagree...

This revision had the edit summary:

the use of "deep fried potatoes" is vague and misleading: it is made with fries, pure and simple

I disagree. "French fries" is a local idiom -- as the "Freedom Fries" incident makes clear. In England one doesn't order "Fish and french fries" -- one orders "Fish and Chips". In England a "chip" is (was?) what Americans call a french fry. What Americans call a "potato chip" is a "potato crisp".

I suggest it is better for the article to be written so it can be understood by those who are not native speakers of English, or who come from a section of the anglosphere where "french fry" is not the conventional term.

So I reverted it.

Cheers! George Swan 16:11, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Hi George, I hesitate to argue with you, since you attended the U. of Waterloo, in Canada, and I haven't spent much time in Canada. But my own impression, gathered from *long* discussions (arguments) at both WP and CZ in the articles about "french fries" vs. "chips", was that the *North American* term, not just USA, was "french fries." "Chips" in England, sure, but not in Canada. Can you give some citations for your statement? For instance, I just clicked on Harvey's which is the second largest fast food franchise in Canada and *their* menu says "French fries." Check for yourself at http://www.harveys.ca/eng/index.php Bon appetit! Hayford Peirce 16:22, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

The official McDonalds site for Canada calls them "French fries" -- see http://www.mcdonalds.ca/NutritionCalculator/index_en.html, where you can get the calory info for their "poutine" -- the picture of which, sure looks like french fries, although some websites, blogs, I guess, have said that the fries Mcdonalds uses for poutine are *slightly* larger than their regular ones.... Hayford Peirce 17:48, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

Our own article on French fries says in the lede: "French fries, or french-fried potatoes, or simply fries, are generally thin sticks of potato that have been deep-fried. They are similar to the chips eaten in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the Commonwealth (excluding Canada)." So I think that unless you come up with some pretty good citations to the contrary that the article's usage of "french fries" should be restored. Hayford Peirce 18:22, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

You are absolutely correct that strips of deep-fried potatoes are generally called "french fries" in Anglophone Canada.

Shall I try to paraphrase the point you are trying to make? No offense if I get it wrong. Are you saying that since Poutine is a Canadian dish the Canadian terms for the components should be those used in the article?

It is a Quebec dish, from the entirely Francophone interior. So may I question why what deep fried potatoes are called in Anglophone Canada is relevant?

I was not trying to claim that the potato food was not called "french fries" in Anglophone Canada, but rather that it was preferable to use a phrase that described the potato component of the dish -- even for those who didn't know, or would have to think, about what a "french fry" was.

Cheers! George Swan 21:44, 27 October 2008 (UTC)

I was primarily concerned by the fact that it seemed to me (and whoever had made an earlier revert) that "deep-fried potatoes" could be taken to mean *large* pieces of potatoes, quarters or halves, even. I've just added "slices of" to the lede sentence, which ought to satisfy all of us. And I removed "deep-fried" from another sentence as being redundant. (I'd sure like to try a really *good* one -- I've never had it. I *love* tourtiere, however, which I make from time to time, and I bought some *great* "smoked meat" sandwiches in Quebec City once....) Hayford Peirce 21:59, 27 October 2008 (UTC)