snails in garlic

[ethandron]

having recently spent some time in france, i had snails in garlic as a starter in a restaurant. never had them before and decided it was about time i did so. well, i have to say i was very disappointed. there were only 6 of the little things on the plate, and they were totally covered in a very heavy garlic/herb butter so the only thing i could taste was garlic (which i love). they were neither chewy nor tender, to be honest they were a bit of a 'nothing' and it left me wondering what all the fuss is about (also left me a bit hungry and wishing i'd gone for the poached eggs in red wine which my husband had).
for a nation supposedly keen on good food i am curious as to why they're so popular (or is that a misconception?), what is the history behind them, and does anyone actually really, really like them??

[chokkie]

Ethandron - were you in Burgundy. Sorry you didn't enjoy the snails with garlic, OH and I love 'em. However, those eggs in red wine can be disgusting. Oeufs en Meurette is what the dish is called. Oh yuk. They are a very traditional Burgundian dish, don't know anything of the history of the dish. Worth googling? Chox.

[ethandron]

yep chokkie, we were near chalons sur soane. we both really liked the egg dish (i had a taste), the sauce was really tasty and the eggs were done to perfection, really nice.
what is it about the snails that you like? i really like oysters and shellfish in general (actually food in general if i'm honest) and was hoping snails would be kind of similar but they just so weren't. it's not that i hated them, just found them a waste of a starter and i'm very interested to know what it is that people enjoy about them.

[ummmm]

My OH had them in a restaurant near us...they were yummy. When I had them in France it was like eating tyres....

[ethandron]

big ones were they, ummmmmm?

[LoftyLottie]

I agree ethandron. I think the garlic sauce is lovely and the snails are pretty tastless and totally boring. Tofu in garlic sauce would be just as good.

Poached eggs in red wine I would never try. I just don't like eggs very much unless they are bashed about and quite hard.

[nextqueen]

ive tried them in a garlic sauce and thought they were ok. they taste quite earthy to me. they didnt bother me, just like taking shellfish out of a shell really, i did look out for the slime though but nothing!