海角大神

French chef Cyril Rouquet delicately adds a splatter of his homemade beetroot and aioli sauce and places an edible flower as he dresses his dish of the day 鈥� parsley bread-crumbed fish on a bed of seasonal vegetables 鈥� for the busy lunch service in his Louvre Bouteille restaurant.

Tucked away in a side street not far from the Louvre museum, Mr. Rouquet鈥檚 restaurant receives daily deliveries of ingredients from Rungis market, the world鈥檚 largest fresh produce wholesalers.

But unions claim that this is becoming a rarity in the industry. They say that restaurants in France, long considered a mecca for gastronomy, are increasingly serving diners frozen meals or ready-to-eat plastic sealed meals, attracted by its obvious economic advantage. And one union, which represents artisanal restaurant-owners, wants to crack down on the alleged practice by redefining the word 鈥渞estaurant.鈥�

Under Synhorcat鈥檚 ambitious proposal, submitted to the French National Assembly today, the term "restaurant" should only apply to those who cook from scratch and use primary products 鈥� or ingredients that cannot be consumed without being cooked. In other words, as Synhorcat says, cuisine 鈥渨ith a knife and not the slash of scissors.鈥�

鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 cost more to make your own meals, if you work in an intelligent way,鈥� Rouquet says matter-of-factly, tossing a handful of carrot gratings and shrimp shells into a deep pot, which will be reduced to a broth later on.

'Our culture is to cook'

鈥淔orty percent of tourists come to France for its gastronomy,鈥� Synhorcat president, Didier Chenet, says. 鈥淎nd we are cheating these clients because certain restaurants buy pre-prepared meals and microwave it. That is not our culture. Our culture is to cook.鈥�

Their proposal follows a similar initiative in April by 15 of France鈥檚 elite chefs to create the label 鈥渞estaurant of quality鈥� to promote establishments who prepare their meals in-house.

According to a Synhorcat poll, 50 percent of diners do not trust that restaurants serve freshly prepared meals.

This proposition is inspired by the 鈥渁rtisanal鈥� baker trade name, introduced in 1995, which distinguishes between bakeries that machine-produce bread and those that bake their own bread from scratch.

In France, there are many existing culinary labels recognized under the law. For example: "organic"; "pure," referring to cold meats; "free-range"; "artisanal"; "traditional"; "natural," referring to non-treated food; "terroir," referring to culinary preparation from a certain region; and "fait maison," or "in-house."

But French fast-food unions argue that adding "restaurant" to this list is elitist and confusing, given the universality of the word. Not surprisingly, they have overwhelmingly opposed the amendment.

A restaurant, by any other name...

鈥淏y the French definition of 鈥榬estaurant,' it is a place where people can dine, where they can eat,鈥� Dominic B茅n茅zet, spokesman for the fast-food union SNARR says.

鈥淲hether they propose fresh meals or not, it takes nothing away from the fact that people come to dine,鈥� he adds.

Mr. Chenet insists that he's not on a crusade against the fast food industry but rather to promote transparency in French gastronomy.

鈥淚n the US, McDonald's would never pretend to be a restaurant. You may eat in a diner or a grill, but fast-food joints are never considered restaurants,鈥� Chenet says.

鈥淚n France today, anyone can be called a restaurant.鈥�

According to a Synhorcat study in April, 31 percent of restaurant owners admitted using industrial practices in their establishments. Chenet says this figure could be higher 鈥� taking in account those who did not own up to this practice.

B茅n茅zet agrees that restaurants should promote in-house cuisine 鈥� but not to the detriment of those using industrial practices.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 see why a restaurant owner cannot use grated carrots delivered in a sachet. It takes nothing away from the fact that they are carrots,鈥� he says. 鈥淚f the restaurant owner must have someone come in to wash, peel, and cut carrots 鈥� it鈥檚 a cost to the customer. Is the customer prepared to pay this extra cost?鈥�

Freshly prepared premium

According to an April poll, the answer is yes 鈥� at least for some. One in three French people would be prepared to pay more for the guarantee of freshly prepared meals in restaurants.

At Rouquet鈥檚 restaurant, salesman Luc Girardot is feasting on the dish of the day. He is willing to pay more for a meal that is guaranteed to be freshly prepared. But within reason. 鈥淯p to 10 percent, but no more,鈥� he says.

At the bar, lawyer Geoffroy Carnivet, is also devouring a meal in his lunch hour. For him, it鈥檚 more about honesty. 鈥淛ust because it鈥檚 frozen doesn鈥檛 mean it鈥檚 bad,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 important to be transparent.鈥�

For the moment, Synhorcat has a long battle ahead of them. In a pre-hearing earlier this month, the amendment was withdrawn, under pressure 鈥� Chenet says 鈥� from the powerful fast food lobby.

Despite the setback, Chenet will continue his battle. Otherwise, he says, 鈥淭omorrow our cuisine will no longer be what it is today.鈥�