Vive les Ants

Cheetos were a scarce commodity last month at the 25th Annual Picnic des Chefs, sponsored by the Club Culinaire of French Cuisine in Griffith Park. At this celebration of the talent burning up Southern California’s French kitchens, alfresco frolickers gathered in tents set up in the Crystal Springs picnic area to savor regional favorites from Paris, Provence, Lyon and Normandy. We found an excuse to hang around the table.

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Christian Monchatre

President of Club Culinaire of French Cuisine and executive chef of the Jonathan Club

Escoffier versus nouvelle: your vote?

Escoffier was traditional, using a lot of butter and cream. Nouvelle means doing new things. Now we are more into health, we use oils and things.

How do you create without butter?

Use the best ingredients, from caviar to haricot verts (green beans).

Haricot verts sounds much tastier than green beans.

I don’t know about that.

What’s the next big wave?

Wherever the chef lives. A French chef in Japan will use Japanese ingredients. That to me is nouvelle cuisine.

How would a poseur impersonate a gourmet?

In Italy, it’s, “Don’t put Parmesan on your seafood pasta!”

Are you offended if somebody puts ketchup on one of your creations?

Let’s put it this way: Not anymore.

What’s the secret to eating all this rich food and staying slim?

We walk and we drink wine!

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Jean-Pierre Bosc

Chef/owner, Cafe des Artistes and Mimosa

What’s the next big wave in French cuisine?

French bistro, the cooking of the real neighborhood restaurants in France. Everyday good things, rustic: steak frites, onion soup, bouillabaisse, original French food. I think we’ve gone back to simple, good things.

How do you tell a real gourmand from a poseur?

A real gourmand is whoever is happy. And not too thin! Thin people cannot be gourmands.

What about picky diners?

I’m not a doctor, I’m a cook.

Your favorite non-French cuisine?

I love Chinese. I love the way they use seafood.

A favorite dish you’ve created?

I like to take things that people are hesitant to eat and make them so people can accept them. Like pork feet. Or something like sweetbreads.

You mean, like, organs?

You see! If you at least give it a try, I will have succeeded.

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Patrick Jamon

Executive chef , The Regency Club

What’s the next big wave in French cuisine?

I think back to Escoffier. We went too far with nouvelle.

But what about us calorie counters?

Don’t go out too often, but when you do, enjoy a great meal.

How often can you get away with it?

Twice a month, and the rest of the time you eat a light bistro grill.

Your favorite dishes to make?

I love to cook lobsters, Dover sole. I love fish. I like the traditional beurre blanc with shallots, cream, butter and lemon.

Don’t Southern Californians panic at all that butter and cream?

When we do heavy dishes at the Regency Club, people have a tendency [to order] them. Veal sweetbread, lamb shanks. Eat too light, you feel like you didn’t have a meal. A nice, rich dessert is always better.

How do you eat this rich food and stay slim?

We drink wine with our meals. No Coca-Cola. Wine burns the fat, and we walk a lot and go [bicycling].

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Jean Francois Meteigner

Chef/owner, La Cachette Restaurant

What’s the next wave in French cuisine?

I do traditional cooking with a lighter finish.

Are Michelin ratings a big deal?

Chefs in France have a lot of stress because of the ratings. But it brings customers. I heard Michelin wants to come here. That’s one more thing to be stressed about.

What’s the secret to eating rich food and staying slim?

French people eat much smaller portions. They eat more vegetables and fruits. They don’t eat pastries every day, just the weekends.

What junk food do you adore?

In-N-Out. I eat there about once a year. I like the burger with the lettuce wrap, and I like the fries.