Bon Appétit : Gourmand, Gourmet, Gastronome

« I enjoy eating and life in general. » Jean-Luc Petitrenaud

This  “gourmet-gourmand-gastronome[Help: infoplus ]” is a French journalist who travels around France discovering the flavours of regional cooking. He drives an old pink and cream coloured London taxi! Jean-Luc Petitrenaud writes a newspaper column and also shares his favourite food and gives delicious recipes on radio and television.

Every region of France has a huge number of culinary specialities. It is impossible to name just one national dish because eating habits vary greatly between Nice (in Provence) and Lille (in Nord) or Brest (in Brittany) and Strasbourg (in Alsace).

For example, fish and seafood (shellfish, oysters...) are caught daily off the French coast and sold fresh in seaside market towns. That is why prawns are eaten more often at the seaside than in the mountains.

Similarly, if olive oil is used in Provence as it is in Spain, Portugal or Italy, it is because olive trees grow there in the sun. Normandy is a region of apple trees and has the green grass cows like so much. In return they give us creamy milk for making butter and cheeses such as camembert.

Each region gives the opportunity to appreciate the flavours - bitter, savoury, sweet and sour.

Bon appétit ![Help: infoplusmenu-asap ]