As stated above,a meal in a typical French restaurant will consist of: a starter (une entrée), such as a mixed salad, soup, some terrine or paté. A main course, (le plat principal, [ler plar pranseeparle]) typically a choice of meat or fish, with potatoes, rice, pasta and/or vegetables; a cheese course (often a selection of local cheeses) and/or a dessert. Desserts are sometimes not detailed on the menu, so you have to listen to the waiter. Common choices include: fruit tart (such as apple tart, tarte aux pommes), crème caramel, ice-cream (glaces). Coffee at the end of the meal is an optional extra.
For special fixed lunchtime menus, called le Menu du jour, see above.
It is in the evening, for dinner, that French restaurants often pull out all the stops. Even on weekdays, an eating out in the evening can often be a long-drawn-out affair, and diners can easily spend between two and three hours at the table. Dining out, in France, is an evening's event, not just a means to avoid feeling hungry; it is highly unusual to find restaurants that chivvy their clients to eat up, pay up and leave, as may happen in some other parts of the world.
The menu will contain the same stages as the classic three/four-course menu indicated above, but may well include five or six courses, with the addition of an "hors d'oeuvre" [or d'eur-vreu] at the start, and a light green salad or a sorbet between courses. In the best restaurants, diners will be expected to start with a pre-meal drink (an apéritif), which will be accompanied by little home-made snacks, which the French call des amuse-bouche or des amuse-gueule [dayz amuse-girl] - a word that has on occasions been misinterpreted by unsuspecting foreign diners - but really means things to whet your appetite.
The number of courses, and the quality of the food, will depend on the reputation and nature of the restaurant, and also on the cost of the menu or à-la-carte dishes chosen; but in any self-respecting restaurant, the cooking will be done using fresh ingredients, and the chefs will take pride in their work.