Gourmet Snacking!

There were a couple dozen French and American restaurants installed in booths around the central market. For a complete list of the restaurants, click here.

For 3€, one could purchase their specialty dishes. The following photographs illustrate the types of food that we sampled:

Huîtres en gelée
By Marc Meneau of L'Espérance
© Discover Paris!

Salade de crevettes barbecue de la Nouvelle Orléans
By Edgar "Dooky" Chase IV of Dooky Chase
© Discover Paris!

Croustillant de volaille à la panure Panjo
Mini-flan de carottes
Petite terrine de taboulé orientale
By Daniel Ginsberg of Nouvelle Cuisine de la Ville de Dijon
© Discover Paris!

Dickie Brennan's Mock Turtle Soup, PoBoy, and Lyonnaise Salad
© Discover Paris!

Quatre-quarts aux figues et au Parmesan
By Jennifer Hough-Loos of August
© Discover Paris!

And there was no lack of New Orleans decor!

Jeff Tunks' Table
© Discover Paris!

Galatoire's Table
Remoulade de Crevettes
© Discover Paris!


Southern Food and Beverage Museum Table
© Discover Paris!


New Orleans, Louisiana display
© Discover Paris!

But the Bourguignons were not to be outdone. They have their pride too!

Are you proud to be Burgundian?
© Discover Paris!

Long live Burgundy!
© Discover Paris!

Culinary Demonstrations

Chef Babette de Rozières
(c) Discover Paris!

On Sunday, June 11, there were culinary demonstrations held in Les Halles, the central, covered market of the city. Babette de Rozières, French chef and television personality, hosted the events.

Chef Ben Thibodeaux
(c) Discover Paris!

The first demonstration was given by Ben Thibodeaux, chef at Dickie Brennan’s Palace Café in New Orleans. His prawns sautéed in a beer-and-spice sauce delighted the audience and persuaded the initially skeptical French hostess that beer and spice can be successfully used together.

Chef Daniel Ginsberg
(c) Discover Paris!

Chef Daniel Ginsberg, director of the central cooking facility for the town of Dijon, prepared a delicious gazpacho à la Dijonnaise served on a creamy foundation in a narrow glass.

Chef Stephanie Carter
(c) Discover Paris!

The next demonstration featured Stephanie Carter of the Southern Food and Beverage Museum, and Emmanuel Hebrard of L'Abbaye de Bussière in Dijon. Chef Carter prepared Bananas Foster, a rum-based banana dessert invented in New Orleans,

Chef Emmanuel Hebrard
(c) Discover Paris!

and Chef Hebrard prepared Nonnette de Bourgogne, a spice cake that he reheated on a skillet. Scrumptous!

Chef Nicolas Isnard
(c) Discover Paris!

Nicolas Isnard, chef of Auberge de la Charme in the nearby town of Prenois gave the final presentation. Before and during the presentation, there was quite a lively, but friendly, dispute between Chef de Rosières and Chef Isnard over the issue of whether spices should be added to food. Chef de Rosières, who hails from Guadaloupe, took the position that spices should be used to enhance the flavor of foods, whereas Chef Isnard took the position that foods should be allowed to express their natural flavors without spices. There was no compromise in their positions! At the end of the demonstration, Chef Isnard had won the day, in our minds, when he distributed an appetizing, vichysoisse-inspired potato and leek dish that he had prepared before our very eyes.

Meet the City That Is Hosting the Festival

Dijon! The name evokes delectable cuisine, fabulous architecture, and magnificent art. The city is perhaps most renowned for its culinary delights: jambon persillé, consisting of morsels of ham and chopped parsley set in wine gelatin; poulet Gaston-Gérard, a chicken dish made with wine, Dijon mustard, and Gruyère cheese, named after a mayor of the city; pain d'épices, a spice bread made with rye, honey, and anise; nonnette de Dijon, a spice cake made with honey and orange marmalade; and crème de cassis de Dijon, a sweet, blackcurrent liqueur, which, when mixed with white wine, makes kir, a popular apéritif in France.

As for fabulous architecture, the remarkable Palace of the Dukes and Estates of Burgundy stands in the heart of the city. It contains representative architecture from the 14th, 15th, 17th, and 18th centuries, including the Tower of Philip the Good (15th century), which affords a spectacular view of the city.

The beautiful Musée des Beaux-Arts, one of the largest museums in France, is the pride of the city. Its collections display masterworks of European art from the Middle Ages to the end of the 20th century, as well as Egyptian art from Antiquity and art from the Greco-Roman era.

All of these attractions—plus the three-day 4-14 Festival celebrating food, music, and Franco-American friendship—make Dijon a great place to visit this summer. See you there!