French Fusion Adventures: CHEESE AND GRAPES FOR HUNGER?

She looks straight into my eye and says, Gina what exactly is your mission and what do you want to achieve? With our papers and pens, Marie, Roland and I began to write out plans. Street kitchens, Restaurants, Food Markets, food events, Wineries, Sea food and anything worth seeing. But most of all I need to meet Jean-Pierre Xiradakis of the famous la Tupina which ranks in the Top 50 Best restaurants in the world and he has also been a host of a cook show for over 10 years, I sure need some food mentors at this time in my life. I had gotten his contact and info from Pierre in Nigeria and I googled him up (Google just makes life easy) and with the info I got from Google, I knew I was not going to leave Bordeaux without a meeting.

Check! Check!! check!!!Everything on the list as Marie and Roland thought of places I can visit that will certainly fit into my desires but for Jean-Pierre, Hmm, they doubted but we will try. I got my phone and gave them the number I was given and Marie dialed.

They spoke in French, apparently from the conversation you will know she is trying to reach a celebrity. She hung up, we have to send a mail and they will try to get us an appointment she said. Wow! I thought, mails, letters, long thing. I naturally don’t like long things but hey, we are trying to reach a celebrity here.

Then I felt the pang!… I am hungry I said immediately (ok, THAT IS GINA, as much as I am going to stretch it and go all out to finish, when I get HUNGRY, I sound it, I don’t hold it back, and you know, I never knew how funny it sounds until people laugh when I do it, we could be in the middle of very serious stuff and the next thing you hear is “I am hungry”, (you can try and imagine all the serious stuff you can think of… lol, sometimes its reflex, as soon as I feel the pang, the words just pop out)

Ooh I have got Cheese and Grapes said Marie-Christine, CHEESE AND GRAPES!!!!? That’s the strangest thing I have ever heard for my Nigerian kind of “HUNGRY” but hey, I am in Europe not Africa. In my part of Africa, if someone is coming from a long Journey, it is mandatory that you welcome the person with very Heavy food, like Fufu and soup, Rice and Stew, Beans and Plantain. But this is an adventure and I am sure it is going to be an all round vavavoom experience. It took me like a few minutes to process Cheese and Grapes as lunch, or brunch or food… as I stammered to answer, my mind was processing my answer. I would have said please may I scan your freeze or pantry to make me some meal? I also wanted to say can I get some fast food shop around for some “chicken and Chips’ (this one is always a life saver whenever I travel) But the adventurous me said instead, Cheese and Grapes? I will like to try that Marie.

Sweet Marie got up and set the table beautifully for my cheese and grapes and of course there was baguette by the side (I was going to find out soon enough that in France, every meal comes with Bread), she showed me how to eat the Cheese and grapes together and of course it tasted excellent, the sweet Grape and the creamy little tanginess of the Cheese just formed an excellent alliance in my mouth “it was like something I never tasted before”. I liked it. But for filling my tummy I munched the baguette and she served crème Brule for desert. I was full.

To be continued.....