Chef's Diary

Un petit mot pour vous recommander un livre que nous utilisons pour nos travaux pratiques. C’est la référence pour notre CAP Cuisine, et tout franchement, c’est bourré de photos et toutes les gestes dont vous aurez besoin. Si vous voulez voir la base de ce que l’on fait dans une cuisine professionnelle, ce livre serait un très bon point de départ….à mon avis. C’est vrai que les feuilles sont très fines, qui n’est pas tjrs très pratique (surtout en cuisine !)….et c’est après tout le référentiel du CAP et donc les recettes ne sont pas très “sexy”. Mais, si vous voulez tout savoir sur les fonds, les sauces, comment manchonner, comment tourner les légumes, brèf…..je vous le conseille fortement.

Donc, les détails sont

Titre : La Cuisine de Référence

Editeur : Editions BPI

Auteur : Michel Maincent-Morel

Prix : 32€

Lien vers le site BPI

Just a quick note to say that I highly recommend our reference book that we use for all of our practical classes. It’s the reference book for the CAP Cuisine, and frankly it’s packed with pictures, all of the techniques that you’ll ever have to apply are in there. It also gives you an idea of how professional cooks work. The only snag being….well, it’s in French !!! So, if you can’t read french, this ain’t really for you. But if you can, then get this book….’nuff said

So, the details are

Title : La Cuisine de Référence

Publisher : Editions BPI

Author : Michel Maincent-Morel

Price : 32€

Link to the site of the publisher, BPI (in French)

I wanted to give those who are interested a summary of what a French Cookery Diploma (the CAP Cuisine, similar to an NVQ in the UK) is all about – specifically for those English speaking people who love cooking and fancy knowing exactly what all French chefs learn when they first start cooking. Clearly this is just my own personal view of what the entry-level cookery diploma here in France is all about.

When, 2 years ago, I was thinking about doing the CAP Cuisine as a means of preparing me for changing career, many people told me that it was out of date, useless, unneccessary, out of touch…. Despite this advice, I was convinced that the CAP would give me a very good base from which I would then be able to discover & develop my own cookery technique. Up until now (7 weeks into the 30+ weeks of training) I haven’t changed my mind. However, take note that I am talking about a CAP which has a placement in a restaurant……half of the time at school and the other half in a restaurant (well, 2 in my case, but usually it’s just one). In my opinion, this outplacement period is absolutely critical. There are schools which only propose the “theoretical” part, that is, just the school without the time in a restaurant…..OK, it’s quicker, but a hell of a lot less interesting….in my opinion.

In any case, I would like to explain why the CAP Cuisine is important and why it’s not simply a diploma which allows us to get onto a “fast track” (which is not necessarily true anyway).

For starters, I am doing my CAP in Further Education (basically, education for adults) which, strictly speaking, is for those who left school at least over 1 year ago, up to adults who are 40+ years old (and with experience in many other sectors). Furthermore, my school proposes a 14 week period in a restaurant in Paris, with the time in the restaurant split evenly with the 16 wks or so spent at school (4 weeks school, 4 weeks restaurant…..perfect !!).

So, who’s in our group ? There are 12 of us – 4 men and 8 women, aged between 21 and 48. We were all in school up until, at the very least, 18 years of age, so academically, we have a decent level (which is pretty rare for a CAP cookery diploma, seemingly). What backgrounds are we from ? IT Consultant (me), IT Department head, Dietician, Consultant at the Job Centre (for executives / managerial staff), waitress, accountant, Supermarket Cash Till operator, student, amongst other things. We’re all very motivated with differing goals for where we want to go once qualified – restaurant (of course), B&B, Cookery Training, Take Away, Chefs.

Why a CAP Cuisine, with a placement ?

First of all, without a CAP you cannot have a apprentice if you are the chef in your own restaurant. In my case, I couldn’t accept that restriction. It’s true, I could open a restaurant and cook, but I would not be able to use an apprentice (much cheaper) and would thus have to hire qualified staff. The other point is that here in France, if you don’t have a nationally recognised diploma, banks are not interested in funding your ventures. Unless you’ve got loads of cash, this is usually a huge sticking point !

Secondly, the CAP teaches you all of the basics of traditional French recipies and technique. Furthermore (and in my opinion more important) you learn how to organise yourself in the kitchen and how to plan your cooking (2 or 3 dishes to prepare, at the same time, what order to do them so that all is ready for service ?)

3rd point is that the discussions that you have with the people that you encounter – the other students, the teachers, the chefs / sous-chefs / commis with whom you work. These discussions are very important for developing our personal projects for when we finish the training.

What Subjects are in the CAP ?

There are 5 (note : the documents attached are in French – takes me too long to translate everything, and I’ve got school work to do !!!),

1) Practical Classes (Travaux Pratiques), 15 per week with 3*5 hour sessions.
2) Organisation & Provisions / Stock
3) Science applied (Sciences Appliquées) to Cookery, Hygiene and Equipment
4) Cookery Technology (Techno Culinaire)
5) Understanding of the Economy and Environment (Connaissance de l’Economie et de l’Env)

…and my opinion ?

In general, all topics in the CAP are useful. There’s no doubt that the academic level is basic, which is sometimes frustrating. Especially in the Economy and Environment classes (which treats all legal, management, cost control, profit issues, and so on) which skim the surface of a topic which interests all those who want to create their own business within 2 years.

However, that said, even if the academic level is basic, the teachers (or at least, ours) are top quality. They’ve all been in the business (that is, the restaurant trade) for many years before becoming teachers (in search of a calmer life, generally !) and thus we can talk with them of many, many interesting topics outside of what is covered by the syllabus. This is one of the main reasons for doing the CAP in Further Education. Once you put motivated adults together with professional teachers with good experience, a special energy is created (I referred to this in my post « The Exponential Curve Effect…. ».

If I had to list the classes by order of importance, I’d say

– potentially crucial, but at the CAP level it’s very, very basic. However, we’re now starting to talk about things that are more interesting and useful for later lives and projects, but this is on an informal basis.

The Placement in the Restaurant – How does it work and what advice would I give ?

I would simply like to say that a training course without a placement, split evenly with time at school over the length of the training, would most likely not be very good (though obviously, for those who don’t have 8 months spare, then an intensive 4 month cookery training – even though purely academic – would be better than nothing). Before choosing my school, I looked into a number of other schools in and around Paris. There were those with the CAP in 3 or 4 months but no placement. There were those with a placement, but with the number of hours in Practical Classes (very important since, even though the placement is a critical part of the training, being able to practice the basic techniques in the “protected” academic environment, under the guidance of a teacher, is also vital) reduced to the bear minimum.

I had made my mind up – I wanted a course which had one half placement and one half school…..and I am well and truely happy with my choice.

In our group we have people placed in the Public Service (Hospital, School, …), hotel restaurant, traditional restaurants (2 Michelin stars, gastro, brasserie, trendy & chic….) and we had the choice of restaurant at the very start of the course.

So, I hope that this brief summary gives you an idea of what a basic cookery course here in France involves. I’d be interested to know what the equivalent is like in other countries. Seemingly, from what I hear from people within the school, other countries are taking the lead in the cookery school domain.

Déjà, je vais écrire cet article en anglais et français / For starters, I’ll be writing this article in English and French.

For the English version, click here

Je voudrais partager avec ceux qui sont intéressés une synthèse de notre CAP de Cuisine afin de vous donner une idée concrète de ce que c’est un CAP Cuisine ici en France. Je ne dis pas que mon expérience est la seule et il y a forcement plusieurs façons d’enseigner le référentiel du CAP.

Quand, il y a 2 ans, je pensais au CAP Cuisine comme façon de me préparer pour une évolution de ma carrière, plusieurs personnes m’ont dit que c’était ringard, inutile, pas nécessaire, déphasé…… Malgré ce conseil et ces avis, j’étais persuadé que le CAP me donnerait une très bonne base à partir de la quelle je pourrais découvrir « ma cuisine » tout en ayant les « bases » sous le coude. Pour l’instant (après 7 semaines) je n’ai pas changé d’avis. Par contre, attention, je suis en alternance…..moitié du temps à l’école et l’autre moitié dans une cuisine dans 2 restaurants. A mon avis, cette période en entreprise est primordiale. Il y a des écoles qui ne proposent que la partie « théorique » sans stage en entreprise – la CAP est plus rapide, mais beaucoup moins intéressant…..à mon avis.

En tout cas, je voudrais vous expliquer pourquoi le CAP Cuisine est important et pourquoi ce n’est pas tout simplement un diplôme qui nous permet de grimper plus vite dans l’hiérarchie d’une cuisine – ce qui n’est pas vrai, de toute façon.

Déjà, il faut préciser que je fais mon CAP en formation continue, qui est, strictement parlant, pour ceux qui sont sortis du système scolaire depuis plus qu’un an – c’est-à-dire, entre qqn qui a quitté l’école en troisième jusqu’aux adultes de 40+ ans qui ont de l’expérience dans d’autres secteurs. En plus, mon CAP Cuisine propose une grosse période de formation en entreprise (c’est-à-dire, nous travaillons dans une cuisine dans un restaurant parisien). Plus exactement, j’ai 14 semaines en entreprise et 16 à l’école.

Alors, dans notre groupe nous avons quel type de profil, déjà ? Nous sommes 12 – 4 garçons et 8 filles, âgés entre 21 et 48. Nous avons presque tous le niveau BAC, voire plus – il n’y a que moi qui n’a pas le niveau BAC, et cela parce que je suis anglais et qu’il n’y a pas d’équivalence entre notre « A » Level et le BAC (malheureusement confirmé par la Maison d’Examens à Paris). Quels métiers là-dedans ? Consultant en informatique, ancien responsable de service informatique, diététicienne, conseillère à l’ANPE, correcteur dans la presse, étudiante, maîtrise d’info et communication, serveuse, comptable, diverse (caissière, vendanges,….), entre autres. On est tous très motivé et nous avons des idées différentes pour nos projets finaux – restaurant (bien sûr), chambre d’hôte, formation aux particuliers, restauration rapide, chef de cuisine.

Pourquoi un CAP Cuisine, en alternance ?

D’abord, sans CAP on ne peut pas prendre des apprentis quand on est le chef cuisinier de notre propre affaire. Pour moi, ceci ne serait pas possible. Oui, je pourrais ouvrir mon propre resto mais je ne pourrais pas prendre un apprenti en cuisine. Il faudrait embaucher déjà un autre cuisinier qui a le CAP Cuisine, qui pourrait lui prendre un apprenti à ma place.

Deuxièmement, on apprend les bases de toutes les recettes et techniques de la cuisine française traditionnelle. De plus (et à mon avis plus important) on apprend comment s’organiser en cuisine et comment planifier notre production (si nous avons 2 ou 3 recettes à réaliser, en même temps, par quoi faut-il commencer, comment avancer et comment faire en sorte que tous les 3 plats sont prêts pour le service ?).

Troisièmement, c’est les échanges avec toutes les personnes que l’on croise – soit les autres étudiants, soit les profs, soit les cuisiniers que l’on rencontre pendant le stage. Ces échanges sont très important pour faire avancer et évoluer nos projets personnels (mon projet évolue déjà).

Quelles matières ?

Il y en a 5,

1) Les Travaux Pratiques (Travaux Pratiques), 15 heures par semaine avec 5 heures par séance.
2) Organisation et Approvisionnement
3) Sciences appliquées (Sciences Appliquées) à l’alimentation, à l’hygiène et aux équipements
4) Technologie Culinaire (Techno Culinaire)
5) Connaissance de l’Economie et de l’Environnement (Connaissance de l’Economie et de l’Env)

Et mon avis ?

En générale, toutes les matières proposées dans le CAP ont leur place. C’est clair que le niveau scolaire / intellectuel est basic, qui est parfois frustrant. En particulier, les cours de « Connaissance de l’Economie et de l’Environnement » (qui traite les aspects juridiques d’une entreprise, la gestion, le coût de revient, marges, et ainsi de suite) glissent à peine sur la surface d’un sujet qui nous intéresse tous (surtout vu que nous sommes nombreux à avoir envie d’ouvrir une affaire d’ici 2 ans).

Mais, ceci dit, même si le niveau nécessaire pour réussir le CAP n’est pas très « poussé », les profs (en tout cas, à notre école) sont d’une très bonne qualité. Ils ont tous trempé dans le métier depuis longue date, et donc en dehors du référentiel standard, nous pouvons discuter de plein choses différentes……d’où vient l’un des intérêts principaux, à mon avis, de passer un CAP en Formation Continue. Une fois des adultes motivées se trouvent en face des professionnels qui connaissent bien le métier d’un cuisinier, il y a une dynamique et une énergie qui se créent. J’y faisais référence dans mon post « The Exponential Curve Effect…. ».

Si j’ai dû classer les cours par ordre d’importance, je dirais

Le Stage – comment ça marche et quel conseil ?

Je voudrais simplement dire qu’une formation sans stage, en alternance, risque de ne pas être très intéressante…..à mon avis. Avant de choisir mon école j’ai passé pas mal de temps à parler avec d’autres écoles de cuisine sur /autour de Paris. Il y en avait qui proposait le CAP dans 3 ou 4 mois, mais il n’y avait pas de stage. Il y en avait qui proposait un stage mais qui « coupait » au minimum les heures de travaux pratique à l’école (très important que ce soit le stage en entreprise, la possibilité de répéter les gestes de base dans le cadre de l’école sous la houlette de l’un de nos profs est aussi primordiale – donc il ne faut pas réduire les heures de TP au minimum).

J’étais clair dans ma tête – je voudrais une formation avec la moitié stage, et la moitié formation à l’école…..et je suis bien content avec mon choix.

Dans notre groupe nous avons des stages en restauration collective, restauration hôtelière, restauration traditionnelle (tous les styles – 2 étoiles, gastronomique, brasserie, branché, chic)…..et nous avions eu le choix de stage au début de notre formation.

Cette semaine nous sommes tous rentrés à l’école pour reprendre le rythme scolaire – beaucoup plus doux, c’est clair, que mes 2 semaines de travail à La Fontaine et au Zephyr. Par contre, je commence à trouver une certaine calme au fourneau à l’école (….parce que soyons clair, je ne suis que très rarement au fourneau quand je suis au restaurant !) et au poste des entrées / desserts quand je suis en cuisine aux restos. Je n’ai tjrs pas la rapidité de geste autour du poisson (préparer le merlan à l’anglaise, désarrêter le saumon – avec un econome, que le chef m’a appris ce soir – et retirer sa peau me prendre bcp plus de temps que les chefs), mais je pense que je commence à enterriner le besoin de tjrs vouloir trouver les raccourcis, toute en respectant les étapes à suivre. A l’école, M. Charron (l’un de nos profs pour nos travaux pratiques – TPs) veut nous guider de moins en moins, qui va nous rendre de plus en plus autonome – une progression qui me plaît énormément. Du coup, nos TPs vont devenir de plus en plus intéressants (parce que parfois, il faut le dire, le référentiel du CAP Cuisine n’est pas passionnant !).

Ce soir nous avons fait 70 couverts et nous étions 2 (même si JB – qui vend les coquillages devant le resto le soir – est venu parfois pour me donner un coup de main, et le chef m’a pas mal aidé avec des remarques du style “le pain grillé pour le fois gras, mettre toute de suite les oeufs coquotte quand le bon de commande arrive….”) en cuisine – moi et le chef. Donc, j’ai dû assurer les entrées et les desserts (avec l’aide de JB), et je m’en suis sorti assez bien (l’équipe est bien gentile avec moi, il faut le dire).

Au final je découvre que je suis assez calme – ceci dit, je cours parfois parce que je n’arrive pas à garder en tête l’ordre de mes tâches…donc, je perds le fil parfois. Mais globalement, je ne panique pas, qui me rassure déja. Encore plus rassurant, c’est que j’aime bien la pression quand le service commence et les bons de commande arrivent sur l’imprimante…..il y a une énergie que je n’ai jamais eu quand j’étais consultant. Je me rappelle quand j’ai lu “Kitchen Confidential” (de Anthony Bourdain, cuisto américain avec un papa Français) l’écrivain parlait avec fièrté de la capacité de l’équipe en cuisine de sortir 200+ couverts le soir (si je me souviens bien). Il parlait bcp de l’énergie en cuisine – souvent la musique était un symbol de l’identité et de l’énergie de l’équipe / du chef. En tout cas, je découvre cette passion pour le moment quand il faut courir tout en restant calme et lucide.

Ca m’intéresserait de savoir comment c’est “l’heure de pointe” dans un resto étoilé…..moins de couverts, je suppose, plus de précision dans l’assiette, plus de rigueur peut-être….des gestes bcp plus techniques…..peut-être. En tout cas, avec La Fontaine et Le Zephyr, je vois pas mal de technicité, d’imagination et de qualité (d’équipe et de produit), et tout cela avec des chefs qui sont très humain.

Ma femme et ma famille continue à m’encourager et me montrer qu’ils sont avec moi 110%…..sans cela cette évolution ne serait pas possible. Je leur remercie pour cela.

Un petit souci pour mon financement par le FONGECIF – j’ai eu une lettre avec un nouveau contrat disant que mon niveau de financement a été ajusté…..on me propose 50% de ce que l’on me proposait il y a 2 mois. Cela me poserait un vrai problème. A voir lundi avec le FONGECIF.

Une dernière remarque concernant mes “posts” dans mon blog. En lisant les blogs d’autres passionnés de la cuisine, je me rends compte que “le coeur de métier” est la publication des recettes. C’est logique puisque, au final, la cuisine et la création et la découverte de recettes est au coeur de ce que nous aimons faire. Par contre, comme vous l’avez déjà constaté peut-être, je ne parle pas vraiment de recettes. Pour l’instant cela ne me passionne pas…..ce qui m’intéresse en ce moment c’est, d’un côté, le partage de ce que je vis, et de l’autre côté, ma découverte du métier, des produits….de la culture cuisine. A terme je vais naturellement passer vers les recettes, je suppose…..on verra bien.

Bonne nuit et à très bientôt.

…..not all at the same time, though, of course !

Slow Food as a concept is something that has interested me (from afar, I hasten to add, since I have never actively participated at any actual event and I am not, as of yet, a paying card member) for quite some time. Why ? Well, purely because their philosophy corresponds pretty well with what is at the core of what is important to me in cuisine. For those who don’t know the Slow Food movement, here’s a brief list of the key aspects of their philosophy – those that correspond with what’s important to me, anyway…..

informed about how our food is produced and actively supporting those who produce it – this is something which will be at the heart of my restaurant, when my time comes, be it produce from France or the UK

responsibility to protect the heritage of food, tradition and culture – another key point for me since la cuisine is a means of sharing and understanding culture and tradition. Again, my current vision of my future restaurant has at the heart of it an exchange (between me, my customers and my suppliers / producers) of cultures, notably the English and French cultures.

good, clean and fair food – that is, food produced in a way which respects the environment and the produce, and the producer is fairly compensated for their work

Bacteria, detergents and disinfectants were the subject of today’s class on Science Applied to Cuisine. I have no intention of sharing the detail of this class with you, but simply, each of these classes on Hygiene in the kitchen reminds me of the big difference between what is stated in the regulations, and what is actually applied in a real traditional restaurant. The kitchens where I work have very good standards of cleanliness – to the point where I arrived at work to find the chef cleaning the kitchen with a high pressure water spray to get the grease and grime out from under the work surfaces and behind the ovens. But it is clear that all of the measures mentioned in the guidelines (1995 restauration traditionnelle and 1997 restauration in the community, and soon to be replaced by 852/2004) are difficult to put in place when the kitchen is not designed and built from scratch – which of course is usually the case. I have at least promised myself (and my tutor) that I will studiously respect the 7 point plan for washing my hands (including nail brush) for when I arrive, leave and come back from the toilet or having eaten.

Otherwise, the cleaning of the kitchen is something that will be treated in detail when my restaurant starts to become a reality…but I know that a real headache awaits !

Blogs are pretty much always in my mind at the moment – primarily, at the moment, the content of my own, but also more and more the content and structure of others. One first observation that I have – an obvious one, I suppose – is the personal nature of blogs. Usually 1 person writing about their thoughts on a certain topic (usually food, for those which interest me at the moment). Given the personal nature of the blog, I am beginning to realise that one has to be very careful with the comments that one leaves….or maybe, like in life, it depends upon the nature of the individual ? Anyway, as far as my thoughts in my blog, I intend to remain as open and honest as possible….but I am starting to realise that I cannot apply the same rule to what I write in other people’s blogs….pretty obvious, I guess, but it didn’t occur to me at first.

Anyway, Id better go since I have my cuisine practical class today – potage julienne darblay, carré de porc poêlé avec pommes gaufrettes…..

After a good day in 2 different kitchens I’d be tempted to say that this project of career reconversion is starting to take shape.

First day in a real kitchen in a real restaurant….okay, cutting very real vegetables, but I felt good, not totally awkward and most certainly not out of place. This was my first morning at “Le Zephyr”, working with the very friendly kitchen team – sous-chef Vincent and trainee Sandrine. Worked a variety of products, including kidneys which I’ve never worked with before. All basic stuff, but just a question of getting my bearings, checking out where the washbasin is, where the knives are, where the veg is prepared, starting to get to know a few of the starters and desserts.

Then, in the afternoon (14h30 – 19h30) it was back to school for a very good practical session in the kitchen with M. Baucheron. On the menu, Macédoine Mayonnaise (ensalada russe / russian salad) and Blanquette de Veau with Créole Rice (ordinary plain rice finished off in the oven with butter). We had plenty to get through and went at it at a good pace – with the result that it felt briefly almost like being at the hotplate in a busy restaurant.

Tonight Olivier (one of the lads from the course) created our Forum “http://greta2007.forumpro.fr”. Go and have look, if your french is up to scratch !

There’s a good feeling in our group – we’re all motivated, we work hard….the telling moment will be after the first 2 weeks in our respective restaurants.

So there we have it, 2 weeks on the CAP Cuisine course and tonight I’ve lost the “buzz”. I think that it’s normal since there’s a bit of fatigue, it has to be said that the dishes that we are preparing aren’t the best in the world (moules marinière, roast chicken, chips tonight, yesterday steak béarnaise and choux pastry with crème chantilly), and just to add to it, we’re in the middle of a tense period for my wife and I.

I went to see the owner of one of the restaurants where I will be working (“Le Zephyr” part-time Monday 9-2pm, Saturday all day) and so as of next Monday I’ll be in the real kitchen cooking (well chopping and preparing cold stuff).

I should be energised, but it ain’t there – I’m worried about what all of this will mean for my family and the couple.

Bon weekend !

Wednesday Week 2 of my cookery diploma, it started with a 4 and a half hour class at 8am, and was thus looking a bit tricky ! However, between Mr Faverol and the rest of us, we managed to get pretty animated by the history of cookery, development of products and techniques in the 19 & 20th centuries, and the structure of a typical kitchen “brigade”…..really good stuff from a teacher who has been there and done it after 15 years of working in various kitchens (including the Ritz).

Then, after lunch with Monique and my wife (semaine du goût – at the restaurant run by the students at our cookery school – food disappointing) I went to the “Librairie Gourmande” near to the Sentier à Paris. Great place, full of cookery books, dvds, biographies, history of cookery, etc….had a great look around, noted some titles that would be good for a later date and then left without buying a thing….which ain’t easy for me when it comes to cookery books !

Got back home (reading the interesting, even if very light, autobiography by Gordon Ramsay “Humble Pie”) and completed my prep work for the practical cookery classes tomorrow and Friday. I feel as though I’m really getting into things, I know the names of a fair bit of the material (knives and pans, basically) and I see now pretty much what is expected of me.

To finish the day, here’s an article about “The Fat Duck” which was voted the best restaurant in the world (in 2005) and has 3 Michelin stars (despite the chef and owner not having any formal training or experience before setting up the restaurant)….

Heston Blumenthal & the Fat Duck

a bientôt

So, I finally got my hands on my knives today….ok, it was only so that I could cut up some veg, but hey, I can honestly say that I was absolutely delighted at the end of the session (5 hrs)…..carrots maçédoine (biggish cubes), jardinère (batons), “ciseler” (cut in fine little cubes, whilst leaving the root on) the onions and shallots, “émincer” onions / carrots / peppers / shallots, “tourner” some potatoes….ohh, nothing much and yet everything !

Today was the first day of real action for me with regards to my project of changing career.

Started with a visit to a restaurant in the 6th arrondissement of Paris (not far from St Michel / Montparnasse) called “Le Timbre” which is run by an Englishman called Chris Wright. He didn’t seem in too much of a mood to chat, but it was good to see another Brit (without any formel qualification !) who has made a good go of it (10 yrs in Paris, 3 as a waiter, 1 as restaurant manager, 6 as manager/chef of the 24 seater restaurant “le Timbre”).

Then off to WH Smith (the bastien of all things literary and, more importantly, ENGLISH in Paris) to buy the biography of Gordon Ramsay “Humble Pie”. Read the chapter on his time in France – fascinating stuff, at least for me…..I have to say that I’m a bit starry eyed at the moment when I read this stuff….I know that I’m caught up in a certain “romantic” view of the industry at the moment, but it’s an essential natural mechanism which allows me to get through the initial “integration” period…..maybe a bit like when a couple become Mum & Dad for the 1st time….it’s such a shock to the system that without the “lovey duvvey” feeling when they look at their new child they would be left feeling submerged by all of the shitty, difficult moments (of which there are quite a few during the first few months)…..so, I’m counting on my “romantic” view getting me through one or 2 sticky moments.

Then off to “Chez Léon” which is co-run by a person who “graduated” from our course 18 mths ago and has gone on to set up his own place (with his cousin). I wanted to see if I could work there during the days when I am at school – in other words, during the 3.5 months that I have of theory and practical lessons at school I am not meant to work (I spend the other 3.5 months working in a restaurant – my “stage” as they say here). However, I want to get as much experience as I can, and thus I am looking for a 2nd restaurant where I will be able to work Monday, Friday (8am-2pm) and all day Saturday. Anyway, “CHez Léon” not being open on Saturday’s, I’ve asked my teacher (Mr Charron) to ask at the Zephyr (which isn’t far from where I live) if they’d be interested by such an arrangement. We’ll see.

Then off to the Fongecif to thank Mr Gharbi who helped a great deal with my application for funding – chocolates bought by my wife, it has to be said !

Then off to my 5 hour class – pure veg cutting heaven !

I’ll take this opportunity to show you a picture of us all – me and my collegues who’ll be accompanying me over these next 8 months.

I finally feel as though my training is starting, and not before time !

alors, c’est parti !!!

My funding has been validated and I’ll be starting my course in just over 2 weeks time (8th Oct)…..elated, chuffed,….they will pay a total of 24000€, which ain’t bad.

Now the planning starts, going to top restaurant “Fontaine Gaillon” tomorrow to check it out with my future teacher from the course (M. Charron). Then need to check out a few others, before I decide which one to use for my “work experience” in a Parisian kitchen….this is the fun bit before the hard work.