Delicious in French is délicieux (day-lee-SYUH), or délicieuse with a feminine noun: la soupe est délicieuse. After c'est, always use délicieux. In everyday speech French people more often say C'est très bon ! or, casually, C'est trop bon !. To thank a host at the end of a meal: C'était délicieux, merci !
- Delicious
- délicieux / délicieuse
- Everyday
- C'est très bon !
- Casual
- C'est trop bon !
- After the meal
- C'était délicieux !
- Level
- A1
Délicieux, très bon or trop bon?
All three are compliments; they differ in how relaxed they sound. Délicieux is the word for a host, a restaurant or a written review. Très bon is the everyday default. Trop bon is what friends say with their mouths full: here trop does not mean "too" in a bad sense, it just means "so".
| French | English | Feel |
|---|---|---|
| C'est délicieux ! | It's delicious! | Polite and warm; fits any meal |
| C'est très bon ! | It's very good! | Everyday |
| C'est trop bon ! | It's so good! | Casual, enthusiastic |
| C'est un régal ! | It's a treat! | Warm praise for a dish |
| Je me régale. | I'm really enjoying this. | Said while eating; very French |
| Miam ! | Yum! | Playful; children and friends |
In a Contos A2 story, a young baker in Lyon tries a recipe that someone has secretly corrected in the family notebook. It works, which is exactly what annoys her:
Camille mange un croissant et elle est très fâchée. Il est trop bon !How do you compliment the cook in French?
Say something during the meal and again at the end. Switching to the past, c'était, is how you thank someone once the plates are cleared.
Ça sent bon !
That smells good!
Ideal when you walk into the kitchen.
Elle est délicieuse, ta tarte.
Your tart is delicious.
Tarte is feminine, so délicieuse.
C'était délicieux, merci beaucoup.
That was delicious, thank you very much.
Vous cuisinez vraiment bien.
You're a really good cook.
Je peux avoir la recette ?
Can I have the recipe?
Smell is part of the compliment in French. In a B2 chapter, the café downstairs sent bon, smells good:
Le café du rez-de-chaussée sent bon le café et la vanille.When does c'est bon not mean tasty?
Very often. C'est bon also means "that's fine", "that's enough" or "we're done". When someone is pouring you wine, c'est bon, merci means stop, thanks. Said with a sigh, c'est bon ! can mean "all right, all right!". Tone and context tell you which.
Learners also mix up bon and bien. Food is bon (it tastes good); c'est bien means it is good in the sense of well done, a good idea, or nice. Ce restaurant est bien praises the place; ce plat est bon praises the food.
Read A2 French stories set in bakeries and cafés, and tap any word for its meaning.
Read free in your browserFrequently asked questions
How do you pronounce délicieux?
"day-lee-SYUH". The final x is silent, and eux is the vowel in "uh" with rounded lips. Délicieuse adds a z sound: "day-lee-SYUHZ".
Is it c'est délicieux or c'est délicieuse?
Always c'est délicieux, even for a feminine food, because c'est is neutral. Agreement only happens when the adjective describes the noun directly: la tarte est délicieuse.
What does un délice mean?
A delight. C'est un délice ! is another warm way to say something is delicious, a little more elegant than c'est trop bon.
What is le goûter?
The afternoon snack French children have after school, often bread with chocolate or a biscuit. The verb goûter means to taste: tu veux goûter ? is do you want to try some?