Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Fernand Point, gracias por haber vivido


Fernand Point (1897 - 1955) was a French restaurateur and is considered to be the father of modern French cuisine.

From his restaurant "La Pyramide" in Vienne, an out-of-the-way town south of Lyon, he gained three Michelin stars and trained a generation of French master chefs: Paul Bocuse, Alain Chapel, Louis Outhier, Georges Perrier and Jean and Pierre, the Brothers Troisgros.

The restaurant was founded shortly after World War I. From its kitchen came the modern lightly-thickened sauces, baby vegetables and other aspects of nouvelle cuisine. During the regime of Vichy France, Point served refugees fleeing the German invasion. When German officers began patronizing his establishment, he stopped serving dinner. When they demanded tables for lunch, he closed his restaurant altogether.

His book Ma Gastronomie contains refined techniques rather than traditional full recipes.

In 1933, when the Michelin Guide first began to rank French restaurants in Paris and the provinces with its system of one, two and three stars, La Pyramide fell into the top three stars category. He insisted that his cooks begin each day with a naked kitchen and start all over again. Paul Bocuse, Point's favorite apprentice, remembered the great man doing his daily marketing, selecting his fish, flesh and fowl to be delivered to the cooks waiting in the kitchen.

3 comments:

Gilgalad said...

Guardián de la Maldita Ota: a éste sí que no lo podés acusar de procesista eh!

El guardian de la maldita ota said...

estos son los hombres que necesitamos, verdaderos cuadros que luchen hasta el final contra las hordas procesistas.
Aprendan Plitos y balás, insignificantes entes.

Gilgalad said...

Y de colorario van los diez mandamientos de la Nouvelle Cuisine:

1. No cocerás demasiado
2. Utilizarás productos frescos y de calidad
3. Aligerarás tu carta
4. No serás sistemáticamente modernista
5. Te servirás de las aportaciones de nuevas técnicas
6. Evitarás adobos, fermentaciones, marinadas, etc.
7. Eliminarás las salsas blancas y las salsas obscuras
8. No ignorarás la dietética
9. No harás trampa en los montajes de los platos
10.Deberás ser creativo