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An Evening with a Culinary God - Jacques Pépin |
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Written by foodie pam
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Monday, 21 May 2007 |
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 Jacques showing another attendee something in _my_ book
Before tonight I was worried that meeting Jacques would somehow ruin him. Ruin my perfect picture of Jacques that is. Or worse yet - show that he was human - which, of course, he is. Fortunately, the human form of Jacques is amazing.
The evening began with Jacques signing my newly purchased version of his latest book "Chez Jacques: Traditions and Rituals of a Cook" and my well loved copy of "Fast Food My Way" . Before signing my "Chez Jacques", Jacques used it to show some interesting pictures to another attendee. In other words - Jacques finger prints are all over my book!  Dare I ever touch the book again?????
 Culinary God and Foodie
Next, Jacques was interviewed by Laura Werlin. The conversation revolved around his book, but Jacques was a formidable interviewee and digressed into many topics. Jacques told us how a "recipe is one moment in time" and that we "should follow the recipe at least the first time" but after that our own likes, dislikes and experiences will become part of the recipe and it will be ours.
Jacques is in person just as one would expect from his shows - interesting, inviting, and entertaining. Jacques told us stories ranging from life on the set with Julia Child, to his first introduction to eating in America, to his passion for painting. The conversation was spontaneous and humorous. When asked about the latest food trends, such as molecular gastronomy, Jacques said "Chef's are thinking too much". But then he went on to explain how plating individual servings was unheard of not too long ago, he then related some of the artistic forms of food to the fashion catwalk and concluded that at least some of these new trends will trickle down to everyday food and find themselves on our family dinner plates in the future.
The evening ended with Hors' dourves, mingling, and more book signing. By this time all event attendees were present and Jacques was kept busy so I didn't get to interact with him again. But that was ok, I had my moment with Jacques and will continue to treasure it. I also look forward to immersing myself in his new book "Chez Jacques" and trying out some of the recipes. And despite my worries of deflating my culinary god view of Jacques, this evening actually elevated him more because it showed me the Jacques we all love is the real Jacques. Or as Jacques says "I think I am a teacher - that's what I do". And we all love you for it - Jacques.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 21 May 2007 )
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