What à point means
À point is French for “just right”, or more literally “to the right point”. In general French cooking it describes anything cooked to perfection, so a fish or a vegetable can be cuit à point when it is done exactly as it should be. The phrase is best known, though, as a level of doneness for steak and other red meat.
On the French scale, it comes after bleu, which is very rare, and saignant, which is rare, and before bien cuit, which is well done. In English terms, à point falls somewhere between medium-rare and medium, with a warm, pink centre and a well-browned outside. There is no exact line, and different restaurants interpret it a little differently, so French steak houses often cook à point rarer than a British diner ordering medium might expect.
The term is also used for duck breast, lamb and liver, which are commonly served pink. At home, cooks judge à point by pressing the meat, which should feel springy rather than soft, or by using a thermometer. You will meet the phrase on French menus, in recipes for steak and in conversations with waiters who ask how you would like your meat cooked.