And two fyi’s… the bathing beau with the Aussie flag is actually French and happens to be our ex-fishmonger… and there are some
Ah Frenchie men. Rummaging through my mum’s cookbooks back in Adelaide this Summer, I spied this gem with a wonderful text on – The Frenchman.
1956. To quote the Browns (Cora, Rose and Bob):
“The Frenchman is informal enough at his plain morning cafe au lait with a brioche or croissant, newspaper and cigaret, but
he approaches both lunch and dinner with sanctified seriousness, a rubbing of hands and tummy, crackling and tucking in of napkins,
anticipatory peeping under dish covers. At table nothing must interfere with his enjoyment,
the slightest interruption is resented and no visitor would presume to butt in on this devout ritual…” (p.277, The Four-in-One Book of Continental Cookery, 1956)
1956. Not much has changed.
…
The Vigneron's Wife 