Shirtless so as not to be completely naked! Olivier Chaput, chef of the Show Devant restaurant in Villejuif, also known for his television chronicles around the kitchen for children or the Bon salon, gives a rant by joining the words.
–
«French gastronomy is in danger (…). More and more restaurateurs and chefs are on the edge of the abyss!»Warns the restaurateur in a video posted last Sunday on social networks.
After having affixed all the badges of the major culinary associations (Euro-Toques, Les Toques Françaises, World Organization of Gastronomy, Disciples Escoffier, Académie Culinaire de France or the International Culinary Order), the chef took off the jacket, keeping only his famous hat, to alert people to the situation in the restaurant industry.
“There are a lot of colleagues at their wit’s end”
“We had to mark the occasion. There are a lot of colleagues at their wit’s end. So far the State and the communities have put aid in place, but not everyone is playing along. Insurance companies, for example, are reluctant to support us. Business interruption due to health emergency is not provided for in our contracts. We must allow ourselves to limit breakage, to save our jobs ”, sums up the chef.
The reopening of restaurants in Île-de-France is also of concern to Olivier Chaput. “We managed to close overnight by organizing to sell our food stock, but we will not be able to be as responsive to the announcement of the recovery. We will have to recommend our raw materials and comply with the health protocol that will be imposed on us. I think it will take us one to two weeks ”.
“Difficult to smile with a mask, to cook or to serve when you are equipped like Robocop”
Like many restaurants in Ile-de-France, chef Villejuifois intends to get by thanks to his regular clientele made up of office workers, shopkeepers, hospitalists and residents, but he apprehends the impact of social distancing measures then. that consumers come looking for usability. “It’s hard to smile with a mask, to cook or to serve when you are equipped like Robocop. The clients will come first to show us their support but if they do not find the warmth and soul of this profession, they will not come back ”, he warns.
