Please could a French speaker help me with a culinary question?

[tulpe]

Hi All

We will be in France for Christmas this year visiting FiL. I want to pre-order a rib of beef from the local butcher. However, FiL is Dutch and although pretty much fluent in French his knowledge of cuts of meat is not so hot!

So, could someone please tell me how to order a Rib of Beef (with the bone left in) weighing approx 1.5kg?

Thanks in advance

Difficult, not in translation but because the french and the english butchers don't cut beef the same way so whatever you order you will be disapointed if you really want the british stuff...
I would say if you want ribs attached the closest to the english cut would be "plat de cote"

"Monsieur, un plat de cote d'un kilo cinq s'il vous plait, avec les os, c'est pour le (date)" to be sure I would add the reciepe " c'est pour rotir...." roast?
If you speack french the best is to ask your butcher what piece of meat he would used for that particular reciepe or cooking style
good luck

I agree with mamaloco that this is more difficult than it seems at first, given that French butchers and English butchers don't have the same meat cutting traditions.

I have got over this by taking pictures of the way I want my meat cut to my butcher - you can download a diagram from the internet if you haven't got a handy one in your cookbook to photocopy. I make sure I have the correct anatomical vocabulary in French and that, plus the diagram, always works. You might need some info on the quality of the beef too.