soupnancy

B&B January 24, 2007

 Who said January was drab?

Not this year. Maybe it’s just me who is particularly busy, without enough time for all the interesting bits and bites crossing my path. However, it does seem like there is an awful lot going on for January. Maybe we never went into hibernation because it wasn’t cold. Funny how everyone bitches about winter until it doesn’t show up, at which point, we realize how much it means to us. Thankfully, it is finally here, and it feels good. Maybe too, some people got some rest over the holidays and so are now all revved up with sober new years resolutions and new ideas. For whatever reason, there is much activity, both in print and on the street. Some restaurants did close for a bit in January, but all are busier than usual for this time of year, chefs are moving around, restaurants are opening and closing. Not all the news is good; for example, Leslie’s scoop about Les Chèvres made me very sad.. http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/weekendlife/story.html?id=fceb8042-e7aa-4c29-be7b-26a3dde9a6e2

Bill is back. Forget about the Porto and cheese combo.

http://thecaveman.blogspot.com/

Ten surprising restaurants in the world.. Thanks to Rob for this link to restaurants across the globe who are doing something different. Besides the technical acrobatics of guys like Achatz and Adria with their liquid nitrogen, melting mango, and edible menus, there are others that are doing the extraordinary with weird props (ninja magic), weird ingredients (roadkill) and in weird places (dinner in the dark, dinner in the sky or dinner in an igloo).

http://www.forbes.com/wineandfood/2006/12/18/most-unusual-restaurants-forbeslife-cx_ls_1219mostunsusualrestaurants_slide.html

Fuel from Chicken fat!? Controversial but at least people are getting creative with respect to the environment. http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/01/schmaltzmobiles.php

Spice it up! Not only because it is cold outside, and that a bit of chile makes just about any dish sing, but pump up the heat for the anti-cancer effects.. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6244715.stm

Watch out for cloned food coming to a store near you. The FDA claims that it’s safe enough.. Perhaps our thickening border is not such a bad thing after all.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/29/business/29fda.html?emc=eta1

Le Marché de Solidarité Régionale en Estrie, a great example of a community project whose time has come: Last week, L’Épicerie reported on a coalition of producers and customers in the Townships that have set up a year round market idea to promote local, sustainable food buying, and they make it easy for consumers. The participants pre-order by internet, then go pick up their goods at the market on Thursdays (bringing their own bags) where they also get to meet the producers and artisans. The farmer is able to charge a lower price due to saving on shipping crates, packaging and transport, and the customer profits from quality local food at a good price. Not only is this set-up better taste-wise, it is also better for the environment (food miles, packaging), as well as for fostering community, bringing you in contact with the country and the people who grow or make your food. This project offers a new and more feasible approach to making a difference in the way we food source. They set a good example; hopefully we will see them expand, as well as copycats in other regions.

http://www.radio-canada.ca/actualite/v2/lepicerie/index.shtml

With Valentine’s Day around the corner, maybe you want to know the truth about aphrodisiacs.. It turns out that there actually IS a scientific basis for the arousing effects of oysters, and not much more than anecdotal evidence for many of the other supposedly sexy foods. Sometimes it is only because the food resembles something we associate with sex be it in appearance, taste or texture. I think we all know a big part of lighting fires is all in the head, relying as much on imagery and suggestion, as direct stimulation of the senses. A carrot might turn you on because of its phallic shape, or an avocado might get you in the mood because of its name (meaning testicle). Perhaps you find the perfume of ginger or the heat of chilli titillating, and are aroused by all of the above because you are told they are aphrodisiacs.. Whatever works for you, I say.. http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/food/story/0,,1986808,00.html

Our Valentine’s menu at la Table des Jardins Sauvages:   http://soupnancy.squarespace.com/recipes-and-menus/

Daniel Boulud, a top New York chef (who is also this year’s guest star chef at Montreal’s food festival this February) is in hot water over charges of discrimination in the running of his restaurant. Anyone who works in the restaurant business in a big city can relate to this delicate situation, as there are many talented, efficient, dedicated immigrants at work behind the scenes in many urban restaurants. Often they are overlooked when it comes to promotions or pay equity, due to poor language skills or a lack of education (in the food arts), or possibly discrimination. I’ve seen both, it depends on the individual and the context; who knows what the facts are at Boulud. It all comes down to fairness and respect being tantamount, then clarity and consistency in operational systems, while fostering an inclusive team spirit and good communication. Not always an easy matter in the chaotic restaurant business, but it is about time the debate of what is acceptable and what is not enters the kitchen, making it an issue as it is in the rest of civilized society. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/17/dining/17prom.html?ex=1326690000&en=36d91502886aefdf&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss

Chocolat: A Longueil cooking school tries to recreate the magic of the Johnny Depp and Juliette Binoche film with an all chocolate gastronomic dinner, it is a fund-raiser for students going off on stages. The six course 'souper-chocolat' takes place Feb. 20 at CFP Jacques-Rousseau, 444, de Gentilly Est, à Longueuil.  For reservations, call (450) 651-6800, poste 2775.

Chefs speak out for sustainable food sourcing. Chef Barton Seaver (Café Saint-Ex and Bar Pilar in Washington DC) calls on chefs to be leaders on this front. http://www.starchefs.com/features/sustainable_food/html/2007_01.shtml

And Dan Barber (Blue Hill, NY) writes an effective, moving piece in the NYTimes in hopes of stirring up some change in agricultural policy as congress sets out to rework its food and farm bill. See below, Amber fields of Bland..  http://soupnancy.squarespace.com/miscellaneaous-food-articles/

Chow’s Molecular Gastronomy Cheat sheet in case you’re still not sure what this trend in cooking is all about, and not sick of hearing about it either..

http://www.chow.com/stories/10411

The best food reading of the month came via the 20^th Anniversary double issue of Edward Behr’s the Art of Eating. For those of you who don’t know this publication, there are no ads or 10 minute recipes here, just in depth, well researched, fascinating articles on a variety of food topics. www.artofeating.com For the serious foodie.

There was an interesting, thought provoking article on the future of wine that discussed how new technology is changing wine, for the better or for the worse. The question of what constitutes the essence of wine comes up in the battle between the traditional ‘let the terroir speak’ approach and the new manipulative approach. Which is more important, natural or good tasting? Paralell to the backlash to molecular gastronomy in food circles, winos are grappling with the mingling of tradition and new science. Of course technology brings useful new tools, but maybe we should beware of the dangers. This article introduces you to some of these modern techniques and the issues at hand.

James McGuire contributed a captivating article about the baguette, its colourful history, and the details behind the making of a proper baguette. I learnt so much! Not only do I better understand dough, but now the ‘no knead, let the fermentation do the work’ thinking behind that puzzling Bittman recipe last year makes more sense. And who would have known there was always so much squabbling among bakers over the course of the evolution of the baguette?!

Probiotics – the next health craze? See NYTimes article below, In Live Bacteria, Food makers see a Bonanza.  http://soupnancy.squarespace.com/miscellaneaous-food-articles/

The National Restaurant Association (US) is upset with Kevin Federline and an insurance company over a SuperBowl ad they find denigrates restaurant workers.. http://adage.com/article?article_id=114465 Since when are restaurant workers so sensitive?