France has dealt a blow to its formidable foe le micro-onde and serial offenders like heat-and-serve foodservice blanquette de veau with a new law that forces restaurants to publicly admit which dishes are pre-assembled and reheated — which is as many as one third, by some estimates. Tomorrow, “fait masion,” or “homemade,” can appear next to any dish entirely made in house, even down to condiments if an establishment’s proprietors so desire. But this is France, so not all lawmakers think it’s enough to halt the country’s slide into gastronomic ignominy. They comprise a group that wants an actual “restaurant” appellation that would make it a controlled label on par with Bordeaux or Camembert, and force chefs who don’t make stuff from scratch to adopt a new job title, like “caterer.” [AFP, Related]
