So, what do I know ?
From the menu I can do,
* tartare de bar et saumon
* petite friture de calmars (3 / 4 mins à la friteuse, il faut défaire ou agiter les tentacules avec une grande fourchette une fois les têtes sont dans l’huile)
* moules de bouchot à la marinière (50 seconds dans le cuiseur à vapeur)
* saumon frais mariné aux pommes de terre
* salade d’artichaut au fois gras
* nems thaï aux langoustines
* tourteau frais aux pamplemousses
* ravioles de langoustines aux persil plat
My 14h30 to 18h tasks,
* peeling artichokes and preparing the hearts
* preparing and washing calamaris (lots and lots and lots)
* boning 52 herring fillets
OK, so it’s started….now it’s down to business. My first day at “La Fontaine Gaillon” has started, 9 til 6pm. The team is good, professional, with most of them having worked together for a number of years having followed the chef, Laurent Audiot, from his previous 1 Michelin star restaurant. I’ll review my experience at the end of the 2 weeks. However, briefly, what did I do today ?
* arrived 9am : met team, met the “Garde Manger” who I’ll be following this week.
* 9-11am : made mayonnaise, prepared tartare sauce, chopped v. finely (”ciselé”) onions (for tartare, vinegar for oysters, for the mussels…..), peeled some green asparagus, cut grapefruit slices, met Gérard Dépardieu (who is a co-owner of the restaurant)….he was perfectly normal and was interested by the fact that an englishman was wanting to stop being a consultant to do a CAP Cuisine and then open a restaurant…
* 11-11h30 : “lunch” with the team
* 11h30 - 14h30 : service. 50 covers
* 14h30 - 18h : prepared 3 crates of camus artichokes, 105 crayfish raviolli, deboned and battered 10 whitings / “merlans”, 30 crayfish nems.
During all of this time, there was of course almost constant cleaning and tidying of our “position” / table.
A good day.
Got home and filleted 3 mackrels !
Dom – 10:44 pm