Class Dinner - Restaurant Review

I haven't really been able to savor truly amazing French food (except for guest C.B. Chefs) mainly because the price tag on most *great* food is more than my budget allows. 100 Euros for a main course? Me thinks not. This is why I was so excited for our class dinner.

We had it at Le Procope :
" The oldest café in Paris...This prestigious place, founded in 1686 by Francesco Procopio dei Coltelli, welcomed such famous patrons as Voltaire, Danton, Robespierre, Molière, Diderot and Benjamin Franklin. The restaurant, which is steeped in history and has a decor largely inspired by the great Parisian events that took place there, will undoubtedly entice you."

Cordon Bleu allows students to bring a guest to the class dinner...for 65 Euros...so while I knew this wasn't going to be the Ledoyen (http://dariainparis.blogspot.com/2008/01/300-euro-meal.html) It should be pretty good!

The evening started very well. We were in the Benjamin Franklin room:
... and were immediately served with cherry infused champagne (Cherry Kir Royale) which was heavenly!


From there, we started with "Salade Gourmand au Foie Gras" which on the main menu is "Salade du Café Procope" and includes a mix of lettuce, lightly cooked green beans, tomatoes, and Foi Gras. This was, of course, served with baguettes which, like most baguettes in Paris, were wonderful. Though some of the other people at the table thought that this appetizer was a bit juvenile, I liked it very much. The service left a bit to be desired though... we were supposed to be served with white wine with the salad, and it took the servers about 10-15 minutes between serving us our salads to pouring us our wine.

The main problems came with the main dish... "Lamb Shoulder '7 hours' with Rosemary and Coco beans." First of all, my plate was cold (though my neighbors was piping hot, most of ours were cold). I also noticed *many* greasy fingerprints on the side of my plate - a BIG no no. In class, we always make sure to wipe the edge of the plate before chef tastes it. The main dish so far gets a 2 for "mise en place." Then I try it.

The meat is tender. (It better be, considering it was braising for 7 hours!) but had no depth in its flavor. The beans didn't add anything either. The saving grace was that it was served with a very nice red wine and since reds are served at room temperature, we already had a bottle on the table. Overall, it was no better than an "everyday" dinner. And even Chef remarked that we could have made better.

Chef with Patricio and Ayako:



I shouldn't be too hard on the restaurant...this dish wasn't even listed on their menu! And I'm only somewhat sure that they served this to us because it was a cheaper dish that they could make for a large crowd (we, basic pastry and cuisine, were about 70).

Despite mediocre performance from the first two dishes, dessert was excellent. The name of the dish we were supposed to have is "Croustillant aux 2 Chocolats" ...but I'm not sure thats what we ended up getting served since "Croustillant" is supposed to be "crunchy" or "crisp" and what we had is much more custard-y. But nonetheless, it was yummy (its hard to mess up dessert):


After dessert, we had espresso (no one ever drinks "cafe au lait" except in the morning) and then the entire class went out drinking. We had an excellent time, and I was surprised that we got out of the bar at 2:30am, by which time the Metro had closed. I taxi-d it home with a full belly, a only somewhat clear head, and happy memories of people in my class.

Not as yummy, but definitely fun!

-Daria

P.S. More pictures to follow...my camera ran out of batteries, so I'll have to wait for one of my classmates to send me her pictures.

My Wellesley Girl Self

I have never considered myself a particularly exemplary student. I didn't expect to, and won't, graduate with a 4.0. But my grades were "above average" and I could probably count the number of non-recruiting related class absences on one hand.

So this is why Cordon Bleu has presented a real disappointment to me.

We are graded on a very long list of skills (about 20) including: Seasoning (protein), Seasoning (Veggie), Trussing, Puff pastry making skill, Hygiene...etc etc. I have a 3.49 out of a possible 5. (As of Feb. 11) The grade doesn't mean much until you know the average. Average is 3.5.

I'm not a grade-grubbing-whore...I'm not a grade-grubbing-whore. I won't let this bother me...I won't let this bother me... Watch the steam come out of my ears.

I'm actually not *that* upset over it. Most people get around a 3.5 average...and I think the highest person in our class probably only got a 3.6. And I'm not trying to compare myself with people who have already worked in a restaurant, or people who have been home cooks for over 30 years.

There is something I am more upset about...attendance.
I really like the classes, I enjoy sitting through the demos, and then though they are masochistically stressful, I even enjoy the practicals. So when I had to miss a demo earlier this week for personal reasons, I was sad. Missing a demo means that you are noat allowed to attend the practical that follows. So there were my first 2 absences.

And today (actually as I type this) I am missing 2 more.

Today I had an 8:30 class. 8:30's are much harder in cooking school than at Wellesley. At sWells, I could wake up at 8:10, grab a banana in the dining hall and rush off to class to be in my seat at 8:30...or 8:32. In cooking school, I have to wake up at 6:45, to get out of the house by 7:20, to get on a metro that gets me to school by 7:45, change into my uniform, talk to my friends a bit, and be seated in the class ready to go at 8:15. At 8:30 (exactly, if not at 8:29) attendance is taken. If you are not there, you have 15 minutes to get your butt into class..if you are not there by 8:45, it counts as an absence.

I woke up this morning at 9:10. Oh I was mad. I always have trouble waking up for early classes, but yesterday I made sure to set my alarm. Set, Double-checked, phone not on vibrate, Set. Not to mention, when I have early classes, Scott gives me a call at 7:20 (since its 10:20 PM Pacific time) to chat on my way in the metro. So I couldn't believe it. Neither my alarm clock, nor Scott woke me up. Why? Because my phone ran out of battery. I charged my phone yesterday. Then I made 2 phone calls, probably totaling 50 minutes of talk time. Then I went to bed. At 5:30 am (I know this because my phone time said 5:30 when I finally plugged it in), my cell phone ran out of juice. So right now, my friends are in demo. And I'm sitting at home writing a blogpost. And in an hour and a half, my friends will be starting a practical...and there is no point in me even going to school because I know I won't be admitted.

So there goes my attendance record :(...and even more...2 awesome classes that I'm sad to miss.

A very sad,
Daria


1pm Update.

What was funny about today's demo is that half my group didn't show up. Out of 7 people that are in my practical subsection, only 4 people were at the demo! This is *very* odd because usually we are always a full class. My friend called me after the demo and told me this very interesting news, so I decided to wing it...I ran to school and got here in record time.

Surprisingly, I even saw one of the other girls who missed the demo and both of us went upstairs to our practical room. Hoping and praying that perhaps the chef (who is very nice) would let us watch. When he got there, we begged and pleaded the Chef's forgiveness (and I even got down on one knee for a moment -- don't worry Scott, it was all in gest ;) ). He let us watch.

We thought we were safe. We started taking notes and even helping out our friends empty their trash bowls and bringing them string to tie up their meat. Until Ms. Bitch arrived.

Ms. Bitch is a school administrator. She says "rules are rules" and kicks us out. We beg and plead (though no one got down on one knee in front of her) and we take our stuff and leave. So the other girl and I go downstairs, put our knives away...and decide to try just once more and sneak back upstairs!

We were greeted by a less friendly chef who had a practical in the classroom next to us (Chef Bruno, the amazing wonderful fantasticly kind chef, was no where to be seen). This Chef told us that we couldn't go - and in fact when I entered the class just to ask my friend if we were still meeting up before the class dinner tonight, she said that I really needed to go because they called Ms. Bitch back up here. We ran as fast as we could.

Leave it up to me to break the rules in order to be able to attend class... I guess these are really my true Wellesley colors.

-Daria

Mickey Mouse

"Think about this: the national hero of children in the US is Mickey Mouse."...

...So says my host-family father today after putting the following little contraption in my bedroom.
A few weeks ago, I was on the phone and I thought I saw a shadow of a mouse. I did not have a clear view, and I told my host-mom that I was a bit concerned. She said that she would call the "Maire de Paris," Paris Mayor's office, and have them come over to the house and put some poison on the ground. (Yes, even the mice are controlled by the government in Paris) But as all things French, it takes a long time for anything to be done. So the inspectors are scheduled to come on Tuesday. Well thank goodness for that, because today I saw a mouse. Not a shadow, but a real, small, almost-cute-if-it-were-not-uninvited, gray mouse.

There is construction next to the house that I am living in, and though my host family is very nice, cleanliness is not exactly one of their strengths. (We have a cleaner that comes once a week, but its not enough to keep this place clean throughout the week.) But what surprised me most was not the mouse. Even though I was disgusted by the mouse, the explanation for the mouse was perhaps of more concern.

"The garage next door to us had mice, obvious since it was a garage." My host-dad starts, trying to console me after I ran downstairs in a panic.
"When they tore it down, the mice went looking for food. And since we often keep the door to the garden open, they sometimes come in." (I'm not joking here) "So they go through the kitchen,"
"WE HAVE MICE IN THE KITCHEN?!?" - Me
"Well, they just run through looking for food, and since you don't keep food in your room, you don't have to worry. They're only passing through."

OK. I consider myself open minded....but mice just "passing through" my room does not much to console me... So he gives his famous gem...

"Think about this: the national hero of children in the US is Mickey Mouse."

So perhaps living with mice is a "city adaptation," much like cramming into a subway at rush hour with no personal space.... the sounds of construction or police/ambulance sirens going off almost all the time...being comfortable with the time that I had a crumb on my lip and a random stranger tells me and then proceeds to wipe it off with her hand...or living in apartments that are about 1/4th the size of American average...

Don't get me wrong - I love the conveniences of living in a city. I love walking and taking the metro everywhere, and I certainly don't miss driving and high gas prices. I adore the fact that I can get a fresh baguette every day without going out of my way to do so. I <3 the fact that when I go to the corner store to buy a tomato for my salad, the owner remembers me and asks me how I liked the wine that I bought there a few weeks ago. And even though sometimes people stare (a major reason I have only gone jogging in this city once), they actually communicate with strangers.

But at the end of the day, I am a suburban girl...and I like to consider Mickey Mouse as a cartoon character only and not a rodent who "sometimes passes through my room."

<3
Daria

P.S. Did you know that mousetraps are made with bread rather than cheese?

Travel Woes

In honor of my dead computer, I'm writing a post on travel woes. (On the family computer)

#1 - My mom was amazing and shipped me the home computer last week. I was supposed to get it on Friday and in fact I did get a phone call that day when I was told that I have to pay 241 Euros in taxes and duties. 241!!! WTF? I needed to talk to my parents about this (we are crossing our fingers that when I leave the country I will get this $$ back) so I told Fedex that I would call them back. I called them back in the early afternoon, credit card in hand. They said - "Great! But its already too late to deliver it to you today...and no....we can't deliver on Saturdays...and no...we can't deliver to you on Monday afternoon/evening it will only be in the morning (I have class then...)" I have class tomorrow all day too, so they said that they will try to deliver tomorrow am (stupid...) but that if I am not there to accept, I can call them tomorrow for a special evening delivery (no...I can't arrange this delivery today for tomorrow evening...it must be arranged same day.) Lets just say I'm going only mildly crazy without my own pc.

#2 Since we are on the subject of computers...2 of my friends computer chargers have failed while in France. Why? Because those thingies that change the plug from round pegs to rectangular pegs don't actually regulate the voltage. This means that your computer charger actually gets much more electricity than it is used to getting...and can fail... When I heard this, I rushed home to check my charger (for my then working computer) and thank goodness it actually accepted a higher voltage and therefore shouldn't fail. Nonetheless, if you plan on using your computer in Europe for any significant period of time, check the fine print on the charger to make sure it can handle the voltage (between 220-240 volts) and if it can't, splurge on a good converter and make sure it is also a regulator.

#3 Speaking of splurging...lets talk about cash. Most places here do not accept credit cards (it is actually amazing here, most people don't even have them!! they just use debit cards, but that is a subject for another post) so it is important always to have cash on you...something I never did in the US. But its not too frustrating since there are ATMs everywhere in Paris. But WATCH OUT! because most of them charge you a fee for using them and you don't even know how much you will be charged until you get your bank statement. (It is never written on the screen)I succumbed to the extra hidden charges last time I was abroad, so this time I asked Bank of America (my bank) if there were any banks I could go to where I wouldn't get charged. Indeed, BofA has a deal with BNP Paribas where they don't charge me any fees to take out $$. I thought I lucked out. Until I started using BNP Paribas....

In Europe, PIN codes are usually no longer than 5 digits. Mine is (secure) and over 5 digits long. Half of the BNP locations I have gone to do not accept my long PIN code. I get a message which states that my PIN is too long. One of my friends had her bank card eaten after this happened to her several times in a row. Since there are no BofA locations here, I can't actually change my PIN, but if you plan on coming to France and your pin is over 5 digits, shorten it to avoid yourself lots of pain.

The normal upbeat blog posts will continue when I get a computer...hopefully tomorrow.

Bissous!
Daria

Wascally Wabbits

My computer broke ... Host Family to the rescue!! My host mom let me borrow her computer for the night so I am psyched to be updating this blog :) What I am not psyched about is the French keyboard - It is close to the American style keyboard, but not quite. E.g: A and Q are switched and m, z, w as well as certain other characters are not in their correct spaces... so if you see a xord (word) like rqbbit (rabbit) you zill (will) have to excuse me.

So today we made rabbit. Cordon Bleu has made me question my attitude towards slaughtering animals...fish, chicken, beef have all been okay, but todays rabbit tested my limits. Here is a picture of what we started with:

Lets start with the fact that the eyeballs and heads are still there!!! This looks like some of my friends pet's minus their fur. So I winced all through demo. The practical was much better because its stressfull enough that I didn't have time to think of what I was doing to the poor rabbit... and ten minutes into practical, the rabbit turned into four legs and three pieces of unrecognizable torso.

The recipe turned out very well. And unlike the previous 3 or 4 times that I have cooked meat, it wasnt overdone!! In addition, this recipe did not use nearly as much butter as some of our others and can be easily replicated to be used with chicken rather than rabbit (the rabbit actually tastes a lot like chicken). I did not bring my recipe book home with me today (It is HEAVY!!!) But I promise to give a recap of it in a later post. (Secret Ingredients are mustard and rosemary) Here is my finished product:

( The rosemary skewer has the wabbit's liver and kidneys on it)

One of the reasons I like this recipe is because it uses much less butter than our previous recipes. In some previous recipes each student would use at least a stick of butter...if not more. (we usually make portions for 4, but in reality they are probably 2 or 3 "real" portions... so a quarter stick of butter in each serving!!) Some of the students have even started calling the school "Cordon Beurre" or Cordon Butter in French. As one New Yorker columnist wrote:

"Waverley Root once divided all Gaul into three fats -- lard, olive oil, and butter -- and said that they determined the shape of French cooking. That you might be able to cook without putting any fat in the pan at all was an unthinkable notion. The charcoal grill, the brick oven, and all the other nonfat ways of cooking now seem normal everywhere except in France..."

This attitude is very true in our kitchens. Even the vegetable soup, and vegetqble garnishes get butter. (Sometimes, if its "mediterranean" its only oil....) But in true french cooking, a meal is a two hour affair with many smallish dishes, starting with an apperatif, then an entree (this is the word for appetizer in French), maybe a second entree, then a plat (main course), then possibly cheese, then a sweet dessert, and then finally perhaps a cigar. In two hours, this leaves you feeling full but not stuffed...and since the portions are fairly small, the fat content is not as large as it would otherwise be in the US. After the meal (breakfast, lunch, or dinner) though, there is NO MORE eating.... no snacks, no chips, no candy... nothing. This has worked remarkably well for the French as most people are normal or a little overwheight, but I have yet to see someone French who is obese.

French attitudes towards food to be continued....

Bissous,

Daria

(And for people who like pictures, here are Patricio and Sarah looking particularly evil before practical today)

Death of my computer

My lifeline to the world, my computer has died.
I am currently on the family comp.... but generally my access will be very limited.