Meatless In Paris: Dining For Vegetarians
Jenny Barchfield – In Paris restaurants, vegetarians often are met with looks of pity, headshaking incomprehension, even snorts of disgust. Eating out can mean endless “salades au chevre chaud,” the warm goat cheese salads that are the only reliable meat-free menu item.
But veggie visitors need not despair. Tasty meatless dining is possible here, where choices include a Michelin-starred establishment renowned for garden-fresh vegetable dishes, tiny tofu joints and restaurants dedicated exclusively to all things cheese.
Three-star vegetables
At L’Arpege, vegetables are the centerpiece — literally. All the tables are adorned not with a tasteful floral arrangement but with ripe vegetables, like artfully sculpted crookneck squash or bouquets of asparagus stalks.
One of just 26 restaurants in France with a top, three-star rating by the Michelin Guide — the country’s culinary bible — L’Arpege is the only one dedicated to vegetables.
Its most celebrated dishes include “tomate confite aux douze saveurs,” a stuffed, preserved tomato, and “l’oeuf fermier de la Bigottiere en chaud et froid,” a concoction of egg yolk, whipped cream and maple syrup served in the eggshell as an appetizer.
Long a bastion of slow-grilled meats, L’Arpege sent shockwaves through France’s gourmet circles by announcing it was going — more or less — veggie in 2001. The restaurant still serves some meat, such as free-range chicken and mutton as well as seafood, but vegetables are the uncontested stars.
L’Arpege’s celebrated chef, Alain Passard, said his decision was not motivated by ethical or health concerns, but rather by a quest for a new challenge.
“One day, I woke up and asked myself, ‘What have I done with a leek, with a carrot? Nothing, or maybe just 10 percent of what can be done with a carrot,”‘ said Passard
All the vegetables served at the restaurant — some 40 tons annually — come from its three organic gardens in the Sarthe, Eure and Manche regions of northern France. And the menus reflect what’s in season: mostly tubers and leafy greens in the winter and a strange and copious variety, including blue kohlrabi, globe turnips and purple asparagus in the summer months.
But don’t expect veggie fare to be easier on the wallet. Even if L’Arpege serves up more spinach than lobster, its prices remain in line with those of other three-star restaurants. At lunch, its eight-course tasting menu runs $170. At dinner, the 10-course menu costs $450, not including wine.
“We want to create a ‘grand cru’ from vegetables,” said Passard. “I talk about carrots the way others talk about Chardonnay or Sauvignon.”
Rubbing shoulders with tomatoes
To taste luxury veggies in their natural environment — or as close to it as you can in Paris — try La Cour Jardin, the Plaza Athenee Hotel’s terrace restaurant, where the tables are interspersed with tomato plants.
The restaurant — which operates under the supervision of French chef celebre Alain Ducasse — changed its menu earlier this year to emphasize vegetable dishes.
“We put meat and fish aside so that the first ingredient that the client reads on the menu is a vegetable,” said the restaurant’s 26-year-old chef, Sylvain Fouilleul. “We’re not trying to teach clients how to eat, but we want to show them we can eat differently.”
Highlights include the “cocotte de quinori et legumes croquants,” a crispy vegetable casserole, and the “fenouil confit au safran,” light puffs of saffron-dusted fennel.
The dessert menu is heavy on fresh fruits — raspberries, wild strawberries and, intriguingly, a “lemon in acid and bitter declension.”
At an estimated $120 per-person for lunch or dinner, drinks not included, La Cour is pricey. But the verdant terrace, which rings with the call of birds at play among the vegetables — not to mention the food — make it well worth it.
How do you say ‘tofu’ in French?
Far from the workaday staple that it is in the U.S., tofu remains an exotic ingredient in France, where it is still largely relegated to Chinese restaurants and natural food stores. But vegetarian restaurants — once an almost unheard of oddity that have mushroomed in recent decades — now serve up a wide variety of tofu-based dishes.
Highlights include:
? Le Grenier de Notre-Dame: Founded in 1978, this cozy restaurant in the heart of Paris bills itself as the French capital’s first vegetarian restaurant. Its large and lengthy menu offers a wealth of choices, the best of which include meatless variations on French classics. Cassoulet, the bean and pork or duck casserole from southwestern France, is made instead from white beans, tomatoes, peppers and seitan, a meat-like protein made from wheat gluten.
? Au Grain de Folie: This hole-in-the-wall in the Montmartre neighborhood specializes in heaping dishes of grains like quinoa, as well as an ever-changing menu of salads, tarts, terrines and casseroles. With just a handful of tables, reservations are advised.
A year’s worth of cheese
Vegetarians who do dairy can sample some of France’s reputed 365 varieties of cheese (estimates vary widely from this legendary figure), from international blockbusters like brie and camembert to rare goat’s and sheep’s cheeses.
The restaurant Pain, vin et fromages (Bread, wine and cheese) is a fine place to start. Tucked into a building near the Pompidou Center modern art museum, the restaurant serves up raclette, fondue and cheese platters, with each hunk adorned with a little flag rating its pungency.
Lunch options
For quick, cheap lunches on the go, try:
? Les Deux Abeilles (Two Bees): The bees in question are the mother-daughter duo who in 1985 founded this charming teahouse, across the street from the Quai Branly art museum. They serve up a vast menu of mostly vegetarian dishes, including a savory flan with tomato sauce, mille-feuilles filled with goat or Roquefort cheese and a lentil salad. Desserts include a sumptuous lemon meringue and seasonal fruit pies.
? Le Bar a Soupes (Soup Bar): A minuscule restaurant that offers a selection of freshly made soups, many of them meat-free. The menu changes daily, but those lucky enough to hit a day when they’re serving the tomato feta would be well-advised to order a large bowl.
Ohio’s Bald Eagles Have Healthy Year
Bob Downing – Bald eagles enjoyed another good year in Ohio. Ohio had a record 215 nests, of which 113 were known to produce eaglets, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources said. Based on reports from wildlife biologists and volunteers, Ohio estimates a minimum of 197 eaglets were hatched from nests in 52 counties, including Medina, Stark and Cuyahoga.
Ohio had a record 222 eaglet hatched last year. But Ohio has no information on how many eaglets might have hatched from 55 of those 113 nests so the 2009 total is probably higher, said Andrea Tibbels, bald eagle project coordinator with the Ohio Division of Wildlife.
Ohio could have had another record year in 2009, but it is impossible to know for sure, she said.
In 2008, Ohio had 184 nests, of which 119 produced eaglets. How many eaglets might have been hatched in 16 nests was not determined.
In the Akron-Canton-Cleveland area, Tibbels said: there were three successful nests this year: a new nest with two eaglets at Chippewa Lake in Medina County; a nest with two young at Walborn Reservoir in Stark County’s Marlboro Township; and a new nest with one eaglet in Cleveland Metroparks’ Rocky River Reservation near Cleveland Hopkins Airport.
Nests that failed in 2009 were located at the Pinery Narrows area of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Brecksville; at Nimisila Reservoir in Green; at Tinkers Creek in Aurora; at Wingfoot Lake in Portage County’s Suffield Township; and in Killbuck Marsh in southwestern Wayne County, she said.
Tibbels said the state has no information about three other nests in Portage County: near Lake Rockwell north of Kent, at Breakneck Creek between Kent and Ravenna, and near Lake Milton.
Ohio had 33 new nests this year. The 2009 numbers mark the 22nd consecutive year that the state’s breeding eagle population has increased, according to the Ohio Division of Wildlife.
Ohio had dropped to four eagle nests on Lake Erie in 1979 because of pesticides and loss of habitat.
After its remarkable comeback, the bald eagle was removed from the federal endangered species list three years ago.
Can Cheese Make You Live Longer?
Shunned by many as a source of artery-clogging cholesterol, calcium-rich dairy products consumed in childhood may in some cases add years to one’s life, reported a study released on Tuesday.
A 65-year follow-up to a 1930s survey of more than 1 300 families in England and Scotland showed that a diet high in milk, cheese and butter did not lead to higher rates of cardiovascular disease. Moreover, children with the largest intake of calcium from dairy enjoyed a lower death rate from strokes, according to the study, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).
Heart disease risk factors begin in childhood, but evidence to date has been inconclusive as to whether dairy consumption at an early age helps or hurts. Some experts have argued that the high fat content in full-butter dairy products contributes to heart problems later in life.
A team of researchers led by Jolieke van der Pols, a scientist at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research, followed up with 4 374 people who took part as children in the late 1930s in a study of food consumption. By 2005, 34 percent of them – 1 468 individuals – had died, 378 from coronary heart disease and 121 from strokes.
No evidence was found of a link between intake of dairy products and either of these causes of mortality.
Surprising, however, childhood intake of calcium – mainly from milk and milk-derived comestibles – corresponded to a lower rate of death by stroke. “Furthermore, childhood diets rich in dairy or calcium were associated with lower all-cause mortality in adulthood,” the study concluded. The authors cautioned that further studies were needed to confirm the findings, which may result in part from other factors such as income levels and occupation.
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Reserve Bank Warns Of Housing Market Bubble Risk
Scott Murdoch – In a speech in Sydney today, Mr Stevens said at a time of rising unemployment it would be “disturbing” for policy makers if there was not more supply coming on to the market which would ensure prices remained under control.
The central bank boss also warned that for global policy makers “challenges abound”, especially the threat of inflation beginning to rise at a time when real economic activity was starting to gain traction.
“A very real challenge in the near term (for Australia is) how to ensure that the ready availability and low cost of housing finance is translated into more dwellings, not just higher prices,” Mr Stevens said.
“Given the circumstances the economy moving to a position of less than full employment, with labour shortages lessening and reduced pressure on prices for raw material inputs, this ought to be the time when we can add to the dwelling stock without a major run-up in prices.
“If we fail to do that, if all we end up with is higher prices and not many more dwellings, then it will be very disappointing, indeed quite disturbing.”
The Reserve Bank may remove its easing bias on monetary policy at the August meeting, as financial markets back the prospect of higher interest rates over the next year.
The interbank futures market now predicts the cash rate of 3 per cent could be up to 95 basis points higher by July next year, indicating the RBA could order up to four official rate hikes.
The national housing market has held up well during the current economic downturn, which economists have attributed to the government’s increased first home owners grant.
As part of the two rounds of fiscal stimulus worth $60 billion, the government extended its first-home owners grant at $21,000 for new homes and $14,000 for existing homes until the end of September. It will then be stepped down to $14,000 for new homes and $10,500 for existing homes until the end of the year.
“The decline in interest rates, together with the additional grants for first-home buyers, has seen a significant pick-up in demand for housing finance,” Mr Stevens said.
“The value of loan approvals has risen by about a third since the low point in the middle of 2008.
“In contrast to developments in so many other countries, house prices are tending, if anything, to rise, and arrears rates on the bulk of mortgages remain very low by historical and international standards. “In fact, across some portfolios arrears rates have declined in recent months.” Mr Stevens also said the global outlook had improved and emphasised the role of business and consumer sentiment and confidence in helping to lift economic conditions.
Mr Stevens said central banking and regulatory authorities would soon start to deal with winding back some of the emergency stimulatory measures put in place in the past year, especially after the collapse of investment bank Lehman Brothers in September. “For their part, banks will need to reduce their reliance on the extended guarantees and stand on their own feet before too much longer,” Mr Stevens said.
“The banks of the United States and Europe are starting down this path on their wholesale issuance, having recognised that it is in their own interests to do so.
“It would make sense for Australian banks, which have accounted for 10 per cent of global issuance of government-guaranteed bank debt over the past nine months, to step up their efforts to do likewise.”
Earlier today, RBA assistant governor Malcolm Edey said the government’s wholesale funding guarantee had served its purpose, but an exit strategy needed to be an important priority.
The RBA official said the guarantee fee structure was designed with an automatic exit in that banks would stop using the guarantee when market conditions allowed funding costs to return to more usual levels.
Some degree of international co-ordination in exit strategies was also required, though some countries could move independently, Mr Edey said.
“It’s important to have some degree of co-ordination (but) I wouldn’t say everyone has to do everything all at once,” the RBA official told a Senate inquiry hearing in Sydney.