It's A Baguette! Trivia Quiz

Answer: with juice

'Au jus' are French words that mean 'with juice'. Some places serve meat (usually beef) with a small container of sauce or gravy for you to dip your sandwich or meat in. The 'au jus' is the natural juices from cooking the meat or can be made from dry packaged ingredients or canned broth or very thin gravy.

Answer: with grating or scraping

In French, 'au gratin' means 'with pan scrapings'. In English, it has come to mean almost any food served 'with gratings'. Those 'gratings' can be bread crumbs, cheese, etc. Potatoes are most common but other vegetables, meats and seafoods are served 'au gratin'.

Answer: Pie with ice cream

Pie 'a la mode' is pie served with 'ice cream on top' or 'to the side' (perhaps your favorite flavor of pie with your favorite flavor of ice cream). The French phrase actually means 'stylish' or 'fashionable'. Most French restaurants will probably not know what pie 'a la mode' is. How the pie and ice cream dessert got started in America is debated but it was definitely served at the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago.

Answer: A la carte

'A la carte' means 'on the menu' or 'according to the menu' in French. Those items have been listed and priced separately. Most restaurants in the U.S. have both combo meals like soup or salad with the main course and dessert for a fixed price (called table d'hôte) and soup or salad for $5, main course for $15 and dessert for $10 - called an expensive way to dine out or 'a la carte'.

Answer: Au revoir

'Au revoir' is French for 'see you later' or 'goodbye'. It's the lighthearted and friendly way to leave someone. If you thought you might never see a person again or wanted to be very dramatic, you could say 'adieu' which means 'Godspeed' or 'to God'.

Answer: A cabinet to hold jewelry

An 'armoire' is 'a wardrobe, a piece of furniture, a cabinet'. The 'free standing cabinet' can store just about anything, depending on needs and the size of the cabinet; e.g. a television, stereo equipment, clothes or in my case, all my jewelry.

Answer: Attaché

'Attaché' is my title. An 'attaché' is 'a person assigned to assist a diplomat or the diplomatic staff in a foreign country'. There is also something called an 'attaché case'. It is a 'small suitcase or briefcase for carrying documents'. I bet attachés carry attaché cases, don't you!?

Answer: Au pair

'Au pair' is a French term meaning 'equal to or on par with'. Typically a woman in late teens or early twenties goes to a foreign country to take on some responsibilities for a small child or children. They may receive room and board as well as a small allowance for these services. They should only be a part-time employee and may be furthering their studies in the foreign country.

Answer: before meal drink or food

'Aperitif' means 'to open or opening' in French so an 'aperitif' is 'a drink or snack before a meal'. In the U.S. it is usually an 'alcoholic beverage meant to stimulate the appetite'. A French chemist originally mixed wine with quinine to fight off malaria. The wine masked the taste and made the medicine go down easier. An 'after dinner drink' is called a 'digestif' and is usually straight alcohol such as brandy or liqueurs.

Answer: a single bite

An 'amuse-bouche' is a 'single bite'; in French, a 'mouth amuser'. These differ from appetizers in that they can not be ordered, they're not even on the menu, they are offered by chefs as a free gift to a diner. "The amuse-bouche is the best way for a great chef to express his big ideas in small bites" (Jean-Georges Vongerichten, celebrity chef).
It was 'à propos' (regarding or concerning - appropriate) that the embassy was decorated with 'avant-garde' (innovative art, music, literature - means on the edge) paintings and statues and lots of 'art nouveau' (style of architecture or decoration in late 19th, early 20th centuries) furniture.
I hope you enjoyed my tour de France.