Weekend Cooking: Grande Maison Paris

Last week I went to watch a Japanese movie that is set in Paris called Grande Maison Paris at a local cinema. I was actually very surprised to see this movie showing, but it turns out that this particular cinema complex shows quite a lot of foreign films, which is unusual for one of the big chains! Most of the films were Indian but I will keep an eye out to see what else they show as it was pretty easy to get to!

The movie opens when we see Japanese chef Natsuki Obana getting a phone call to tell him that he has maintained his two Michelin star rating. Whilst you would think that is something to be celebrated, he is devastated as he has been striving for years to get a very rare 3rd Michelin star for his Paris restaurant. If he had of been successful, he would have been the first Asian chef to achieve this in Paris. The chef is not the only person who is disappointed either. His team have worked very hard for him, and take the news badly.

Chef Obana and his team are cooking for a very fancy dinner and for various reasons a number of things go wrong. One of the guests is his main backer who subsequently calls him in and tells him that he is ending his lease, and that he has another chef lined up to take over the space. Obana makes a deal. If he can get a three star review from Michelin, he can stay. If he cannot, then the restaurant will close and he will return to Japan.

Obana leads a talented, multinational team in his kitchen, but he isn't always a great leader. He doesn't listen to the people around them, or their ideas and this soon leads to a clash with his sous chef, Rinko, which leads to her leaving the team. It turns out that Rinko is the one with the interpersonal soft skills and her leaving causes the team dynamics to change.

Part of the issue for the restaurant is that, being outsiders, it is often difficult for them to get the best ingredients from the suppliers. Often, they are are told that the best quality ingredients are only available to the top restaurants in the city which is very frustrating when you are trying to get to be one of those restaurants. Sometimes, the market traders pretend they cannot understand the orders. 

In reaction to the deal he has made, Obana determines that the only way that he is going to achieve what he is striving for is to be almost more French than the French, despite his team telling him that he should be using their uniqueness as a way to shine.

There are ups and downs as Obana is threatened with closure several times, with interpersonal relationships being strained and one of the team members bringing their personal issues close to causing a tragedy.

It is only as Obana begins to work with his team, instead of dictating to them, and brings more of himself and his team to the food that he is creating, that he begins to see what the possibilities might be for the future.

If you need no other reason to watch this movie, then watch it for the food porn! Oh my goodness, there is so much delicious looking and sounding food in this movie! Obviously, given that the storyline is about striving for that third star, we are talking very, very high end food, but the way that the dishes are put together on the screen, the cooking and plating sequences! So beautiful. It is probably best not to go and see this when you are hungry.

One of the key messages is about French cuisine itself, about how it continues to evolve into something new. Yes, there are the classics but there is also room for new ideas, concepts and tastes, as long as your get it right!

Interestingly, I have only just learned that this movie is actually a spin off from a very successful Japanese TV series called Grande Maison Tokyo. Learning this has given me an a-ha moment as there is a point in the movie where we see the Tokyo restaurant and I was a bit perplexed as to why that would be! It also explained a couple of the tangents in the movie which added some drama but I found myself wondering why it needed to be there. I am definitely going to see if I can find the TV show to watch!

I really enjoyed watching this movie, especially for the food elements, and I was cheering on the team from Grande Maison Paris right to the end!

I have watched several things over the last few months that have a French/Japanese crossover. I watched a movie called Umami which starred Gerard Depardieu as a French chef who nearly dies and decides to just disappear to Japan to look for an old rival. Another movie I watched was Sidonie in Japan about a French author who goes to Japan on a book tour and keeps on seeing the ghost of her husband. I also started watching a series on AppleTV called Fools Gold. I must get back to that and finish watching it. 

Here's the trailer for Grande Maison Paris

I am sharing this with Paris in July hosted by Emma at Words and Peace.

Weekly meals

Saturday - Chicken enchiladas
Sunday - Roast beef and vegetables
Monday - Pork chops, mash, broccoli and gravy
Tuesday - Out for dinner
Wednesday - Chicken Stir Fry
Thursday - Beef Casserole pie
Friday - Chicken and broccoli pasta bake

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

This Week...

I'm reading

As I mentioned last week, the theme for our next read on a theme book club is war. I probably have at least 50 options already on my Kindle to fit that theme so I suspect that I will be reading multiple books again this month. I have already read the first which was The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn. I had this from Netgalley before it was even released. I do intend to write a review. Do you think it's too late to add feedback now?

I also read Over the Sea to Skye this week. This is the third book in the Skye Sisters trilogy and I enjoyed it. My review will be up later this week.

On audio, I finished The Mirror by Nora Roberts, the second book in the Lost Brides trilogy. The final book comes out later this year and I am looking forward to seeing how she wraps the story up. I have no idea what book I am going to listen to next. I have so many options and I can't make a decision. I did look at all the books I have nominated for 20 Books of Winter, but I already own them all or at least have them out of the library. 

I also finished The Page Turner by Viola Shipman Normally l love this author but this one didn't work for me. It did, however, have some great quotes about books and reading.  Here's just one

"Sometimes we forget why we read," my mother says as if to herself. "Sometimes it is to walk in someone else's shoes for a while. Sometimes it is to travel to a place or time we never will. Sometimes it is to get angry or more informed. And sometimes it's simply to escape, smile and be offered a little bit of hope so it's possible to go on in this world."

I was excited to attend the launch event for Jodie McAlister's new book, An Academic Affair. I am really looking forward to reading this one! It sounds so good!

I'm watching


I watched a French movie called Siddonie in Japan. It was a very quiet movie about an author who goes on a book tour to Japan. However, the ghost of her husband starts to appear to her as she begins to have feelings for her publisher. She visits some of the same places we went to in Japan. Only difference....there were no crowds! Here's the trailer

Life

It's been a very social long weekend here. Today is a public holiday to celebrate the King's Birthday (it's not his actual birthday) but it was mine! I was out for lunch and dinner on Friday, then we went to Geelong for lunch, and then to an engagement party and then brunch on both Sunday and Monday! Now I am ready for a good lay down!

Everything at the lunch at Geelong was delicious, and the view is pretty spectacular too!

Posts from the last week

Top Ten Tuesday: 10 of my 20 Books of Summer
The Women by Kristin Hannah

The Bad Bridesmaid by Rachael Johns

Blog Tour: The Silver Ladies Seize the Day by Judy Leigh
Weekend Cooking: In My Kitchen - May

Six Degrees: All Fours to War and Peace






I've linked this post to It's Monday, what are you reading? as hosted by Book Date and Sunday Salon hosted at Readerbuzz

This week

I'm reading

We have a great life in Australia. One of the less positive things is that it takes a long time to get anywhere, but of course you can find some silver linings if you look hard enough. For example, this week we had around 20 hours of travel time which means I got a few stories read and watched a couple of things.

While we were on the plane, I finished reading The Secret Keeper by Renita D'Silva and then I read a few short stories. I will post my review for The Secret Keeper next week.

I was introduced to a historical fiction short story collection which is being published as a collection called Blaze by The Chocolate Lady's Book Review Blog. It is spotlighting interesting stories about women. So far I have read Barriers to Entry by Ariel Lawhon and The Forgotten Chapter by Pam Jenoff. I have had Lawhon on my radar for a long time but never actually read her. I will definitely read more. And I have read Pam Jenoff but it has been many, many years. I have some more long flights in my future so I will probably read more.

The other short story I read was by a new to me Scottish author, Stuart MacBride. The story was called The Tasting Menu. I don't read a lot of crime these days, so this was a bit out of my comfort zone, but I picked it up as part of the Amazon First Reads. If I had to pick a word to describe it, it would probably be gruesome.

Finally I started read The Map Maker's Secret by Catherine Law, which is another book predominantly set in Scotland. So far I am enjoying it a lot.


I'm watching

Before we left home, we were still watching a lot of Olympics, and that has continue since we arrived, except now we have to cheer for Australia, South Africa and the Netherlands.

On the plane there were a number of things on offer that I would like to watch. First up I watched a French/Japanese movie called Umami which stars Gerard areu. It is about a French chef who nearly dies and decides on a whim to go to Japan in search of the mysterious qualities of umami. It wasn't bad.

The next movie I watched was called Just One Small Favour. This is a Spanish comedy where a dysfunctional family is called to their summer home when the maid dies, and suddenly lots of secrets are being revealed. It was a bit of fun.

The final thing I watched was a cooking series called Simple Spices by British chef Nadiya Hussain. I have enjoyed a few of her books and series, and this was really good as well. I am not sure this is on in Australia so it was a bit of a find, and there are definitely 

Life

Can you tell I didn't get much sleep on the flight? We are here for my parents-in-laws 60th wedding anniversary, but on Friday we did a walking tour of Soweto which was very interesting, and now we are at a game lodge where we have been on a game drive so far and this morning a massage. The place we are staying is really 1beautiful, with this lovely pool. I am not sure it is quite hot enough to get in the pool but we will see

Posts from the last week

Top Ten Tuesday: Holiday Countdown!

Blog Tour: An Island Promise by Kate Frost 

Weekend Cooking: Greek-ish by Georgina Hayden

Sunday Salon: Historical Fiction Reading Challenge - July statistics

I've linked this post to It's Monday, what are you reading? as hosted by Book Date