As a French in the US for a few years now, I second with some nuance. First there would never be meat at breakfast in France for instance, forget the bacon stri

As a French in the US for a few years now, I second with some nuance. First there would never be meat at breakfast in France for instance, forget the bacon strips and the eggs... Also, diner in my family was often "bread and vegetable soup", or "pasta and tomato sauce". So while the main "traditional" dishes have meat, we don't always eat meat. Also, while traditional dishes have meat inside, what makes the French Cuisine is not tied to it: you can get most of the taste from some nice sauces, often based of wine. Other than a salad, I'm not sure I really see "non animal-based" meal in the US either (unless going to an Indian restaurant, or a vegetarian one).