point de vue!

qu'est ce que vous pensez de cette article parue dans le herald tribune de jeudi? BORDEAUX: Only a few years ago you could be pretty sure to get an above-average meal at most any restaurant in France, priced right and served by people proud of their profession. Ah, those were the days. John Mariani, food and wine critic of Esquire magazine, told me recently that he would never forget the aroma billowing from a plate of blanquette de veau he had ordered in a modest Paris establishment some years ago. "I can still smell it," he said. "Wonderful." And I recall the taste of my first boudin noir and baked apples in a hole-in-the-wall restaurant in Paris in the 1970s. Combined with a red Burgundy, it set off my taste buds very nicely. These happy encounters are becoming rare, however, as France appears to be losing its leadership in simple, honest cooking. Mariani says he would love to be able to "parachute in" and find fabulous food at random, as he once did, but it's "just not possible today". My experience exactly. Mid-range restaurants are suffering from a bad case of what the French call "J'm'en foutisme" (I don't care-ism), which leads to indifference and finally déresponsibilsation (not my fault-ism). Today in Opinion Looking to Latin America Searching the Web for flu outbreaks Save the economy, and the planet Everyone seems to have a favorite restaurant disaster story, but a couple of recent experiences have really upped my dander. At the appropriately named Café de l'Esperance (Café of Hope) near Bordeaux, hope is just what you need when all the bustle is happening at the other tables. "Oops, I forgot to process your order," the waiter finally said. And at La Winery in the Médoc I counted seven dead flies on the window sill while waiting an hour between courses. In both cases, the cooking was a disappointment. Traveling in New England recently, I got the feeling that it's easier to find good French food abroad. In Boston, after a fine meal of traditional French cooking, I asked to speak with the chef. Jacky Robert, owner of three moderately priced Petit Robert restaurants in the area, came out of the kitchen clad in his apron. I asked him about American trends. "It's very competitive here so we work hard to keep our standards up," he said. "Americans have become a lot more demanding." Young French chefs gravitate to the United States, he said, where money flows more freely. "Americans are not afraid of being rich." The biggest problems for the new chefs are getting a U.S. visa and avoiding having their personal sets of knives confiscated by with Homeland Security officers. French chefs also are heading for London, Tokyo and other major cities to make their careers. And it's not just the three star restaurants that are hiring them. Many are recruited for mid-range restaurants. Figures are hard to come by but in Paris an employment agency called International Services is actively recruiting for French restaurants abroad. "We recruit hundreds of chefs, pastry chefs and kitchen helpers every year," says its president, Marc Chetrit. "Some go to the U.S. but lots of them are taken up by the Emirates, Australia, East Europe and luxury cruise ships." I recently sought out Pascal Rémy, a former Michelin inspector, and he was unequivocal. "We French used to be the strongest in good everyday cuisine in our own market," he said. "Now we're the weakest." Rémy created a stir a few years ago with his book "L'inspecteur se met à table" (The inspector sits down to eat), in which he tells of bad habits creeping into the cuisine culture. Chefs in France are under pressure to find cheaper ingredients and achieve better financial results. He quotes one as telling a seafood supplier to provide lower-grade fish because "the public doesn't know the difference." Rémy believes he has found the source of the problem. First, the culinary professions have lost their luster. Kitchen work and waiting tables has been "totally devalued" as a career. The French 35-hour work week has helped undermine pride in the profession. Second, he says, even cooking schools have let standards slide. "The training of our young people is lamentable," he said. I think another problem is that French chef have forsaken tradition for "creativity." "I have to control a lot of my young chefs who are too eager to be creative," Robert says. At Petit Robert in Boston, my French companion went traditional and ordered the Hachi Parmentier, a country staple of mashed potatoes and ground beef. "This is excellent," she said, digging in. "Not like that horror we get in France."

Comments

[le blog gourmand]

oui vous avez raison tous les deux mais il faut vraiment faire quelque chose pour ne pas perdre les vrais valeurs,amicalement dominique

[nicolas]

Notre pays est uen grande destination touristique, qui draine sans effort des clients aux tables des restaurants.

Comme toujours dans un desequilibre economique, ce qui apparait etre une benediction se transforme dans les faits en fardeau pour les bons artisans..

C'est pourquoi il est important d'avoir des guides et des labels guidant les masses me semble-t-il..

[Robert-Gilles]

Cher Dominique!
Bonjour!
Tu as l'air de t'etre bien amuse a Hakata!
Malheureusement cet article ne me surprend guere, surtout dans le cas de Bordeaux ou j'ai passe deux annees.
Dans un sens c'est normal, ces grosses villes metropolitaines ne font qu'"importer" la gastronomie de nos campagnes.
Il serait bon de demystifier tous ces magazines et critiques qui ne font que commenter leurs "grands" restaurants de leurs "grandes" villes.
Heureusement que beaucoup de bloggeurs font connaitre leurs terroirs.
Il suffit de lire tous ces amoureux etrangers de la gastronomie francaise faire son eloge, partager leurs recettes et trouvailles a http://foodbuzz.com/ pour s'en rendre compte!
Bien amicalement,
Robert-Gilles