This is an image from one of my favorite old cookbooks, Vingt Plats qui Donnent La Goutte by the great Edouard de Pomiane, author of French Cooking in Ten Minutes, one of the most delightful cookbooks ever published (there are many different editions in both French and English).
I bring this up because my friend Alec Lobrano just told me about a unique French culinary publishing house, Fretin (the website is in both French and English). A foodlover’s fantasy, they republish tomes of historic interest (The Pleasures of the Table by Édouard Nignon, the most famous cook of the early 20th century), and produce their own quirky culinary books (The Japanese Restaurants of Paris).
In addition, they have brought back Pomiane’s Radio Cuisine. Pomiane was a doctor and scientist with a big heart (he worried about the suffering of lobsters), and an extraordinary ability to simplify cooking. His books are wonderful, but I’ve always wished I could listen to the radio show he produced on Friday nights from 1923 to 1929. It was probably the first cooking show ever broadcast. What a thrill to travel through time and listen to a show that is almost one hundred years old.
John Donohue draws restaurants. Lots of them. And I have to admit that during lockdown, when restaurants were closed and travel impossible, I found myself taking down his book, All the Restaurants of Paris, and simply dreaming.
The book is great; the drawings are better. If you have a friend who’s in love with a certain Paris restaurant (don’t we all?), I can’t think of a more perfect present than one of John’s limited edition prints of Paris Restaurants. The restaurants are thoughtfully arranged both alphabetically and by arrondissement; even if you’re not in the market for a gift, the website is a great place to spend a little time.
And speaking of Paris… These menus are from a trip I took to Paris in 1994. The top menu is from Joel Robuchon’s restaurant, Jamin. I remember that meal with such pleasure, remember thinking that it was so technically perfect it was hard to believe the food was made by human hands. And that caviar gelee with cauliflower cream? I still dream about.
If you’re curious about prices… In 1994 the franc traded between 5 and 6 to the dollar. So the 1200 franc meal would have been about $200 a person.
The second menu is from Guy Savoy. I have a very soft spot in my heart for this 3-star restaurant . In 1978 I went there, nervously alone, for the first really fancy meal I ever had as a solo diner. The waiters were so kind; they gave me the courage to eat alone at other high-end spots, but no dinner has ever tasted quite so delicious.
I too ate at Guy Savoy as a single. The staff made me feel like a VIP and Savoy himself came out to greet me. We had a nice conversation through his broken English and my horrible middle-school french. As I was leaving, the maitre 'd gave me a bag with a signed menu, note and a sweet for later. What class ...
Thank you for the armchair travel, it is sorely needed. The covers of those cookbooks are delightful, I'm dreaming of a future trip to Paris and rummaging through the many used bookshops.