French Women Don't Get fat

With Summer fast approaching, thoughts of beach wear, bikinis, skimpy shorts and how to achieve that perfect Summer figure can stop us thinking of restaurants. In fact, the usual solution is to stop eating altogether. I would like to remind everyone out there who has decided to ban restaurant dining, that "French Women don't get Fat" as written by Mireille Guiliano! And the simple reason is because the French will ALWAYS find time to eat. Lunch-time in a busy French city centre and the restaurants are heaving as office workers scramble for a seat to enjoy a freshly prepared plat du jour. Three meals a day, light, freshly prepared and nutritious, no snacking, WILL keep the weight stable. Unfortunately this does not mean a daily diet of frites but French Living offers lighter options such as our daily salades or fish. And don't forget that because all our dishes are freshly prepared in the kitchen (and not frozen, ready prepped, or shipped in from a central depot) our chefs can amend a dish within reason to make it lighter - for example replace frites with steamed potatoes.

So make a French Living lunch part of your Summer time health regime and watch the calories melt away!

Merci!

In 2004 we organised a party to celebrate French Living's 10 years of existence. This informal gathering was a small gesture of thanks for some of our loyal customers, suppliers and supporters. Ten years is a long time and such longevity can only be achieved by nurturing a core family of faithful followers. French Living is extremely fortunate to have discovered so many loyal customers, many of whom have watched Stephane and I mature and grow, as babies and aupairs joined the team alongside our slowly developing and expanding business.

It's 2011, Nina and Pierre no longer need aupairs and we have decided not to wait another ten years before we say thank-you again. This is why we have introduced a French Living loyalty card which will treat our regular lunchtime customers to a blackboard two course lunch in return for ten lunchtime visits.

Pick up your card today and merci beaucoup for your support and custom.

Bonne Fete Maman!

French Living has never before opened on a Sunday, however on Sunday 3rd April French Living will open its doors to participate in the Mother's Day celebrations.

Just to make life very difficult for all Frenchmen living in England, the Fetes des Meres date is completely different in France. They celebrate on the 29th May. As you can imagine this generates awkward telephone conversations when "Bonne Fete Maman" is lovingly announced two months early, even worse when no kind words are forthcoming on the big day.

Maybe French Living should have two celebrations!

French Coffee

As you may have now noticed (after 17 years of existence) French Living likes to do things the French way. And this includes when and how to drink coffee.

I remember being bemused by Stephane's adamant refusal to drink milky coffee after midday. He dunks his toast into a morning grand creme and then an espresso is his only cafeine shot at the end of lunch. Definitely no coffee in the evening. I did eventually lure him into a British four o'clock tea break ritual but French habits are deep-rooted and tricky to break. They are also pretty contagious and after almost twenty years of marriage to a traditional Corsican I too am no longer a 24 hour milky coffee drinker.

There are numerous health benefits to limiting cafeine intake so maybe our new French cafe opening hours will encourage you all to become healthier and more appreciative of a quality 100% arabica coffee, drunk in French time.

The cafe is open in the morning from 9.30am, where you can enjoy a milky grand creme and feel free to dunk our buttery croissants.

12 midday is lunch-time and the moment for coffee to be put on hold.

The cafe reopens again at 3pm once lunch is done and dusted, time for afternoon tea or more coffee if you cannot resist.

Try drinking coffee in French time and savour the precious moment.

Portraits Gallery

We have added a portrait gallery to our website. Anyone is able to log in to www.frenchliving.co.uk and see the faces of the current team of our restaurant in Nottingham. We have put people's first names and their town of origin. It is plain to see that French Living is a French speaking restaurant, with all but 2 members of staff (one KP, one restaurant manager), originating from France.


No wonder our French customers feel at home when they visit, and our English guests are pleasantly surprised to sense a resolutely Gallic ambiance, which, unlike other restaurants in Nottingham and elsewhere, is not limited to a couple of student waiters, but stretches to all the chefs as well. No wonder the cuisine has this je ne sais quoi they only teach at catering college in France. (Blaise, rassures toi, ta photo sera changée bientot!)

Making Changes

If I had to cite the most important lesson learnt after 15 years in business it would be the one that says don't get too emotionally attached and be prepared to make changes.
French Living has adapted again and made some big changes, all with you, our loyal customers in mind. I suppose the wine bar idea - opening upstairs for a couple of hours in the early evening - sort of showed us the way. But customers didn't want nibbles and a glass of wine, they wanted a French Living plat du jour, cassoulet, escargots as well as a broad choice of wines by the glass. And so we listened and made the major decision to create more restaurant space by removing the shop shelves and serving restaurant meals upstairs - at ground floor level in full view of hungry passing pedestrians - as well as continuing to serve meals downstairs in our cosy cellar.
French Living began life as a retail venture, a unique French shop selling everything to do with food from France. Over the years, the shop space has reduced in size, allowing the demand for eating and drinking to be fulfilled. However, the original fridge crammed full of traditional unpasteurised farmhouse cheeses, charcuterie and homemade patisserie still remains as a French Living focal point alongside the impressive regional wine display, open for retail sales along with a grand creme coffee and croissant in the morning and the afternoon.
Taking away my precious shop shelves seems like a big change, a major blow, but I have to admit it all seems very right, very French Living. It is just as it should be.

Wine Bar Now Open!

Stephane used his time recuperating from a lacerated hand extremely profitably. He devised a clever wine bar menu including a selection of wines by the glass and delicious French-style tapas dishes. It took him longer than usual to type these ideas out but when he got frustrated trying to tap left-handed he moved on to formulating a play-list of soothing French jazz and blues music. And so when the shop and cafe finish their day-time business of baguettes and grand creme coffee, the lights are dimmed, the candles lit, the wine bar menus are placed on the tables and Stephane's music is turned on, miraculously creating a restful wine bar mood.

We're now waiting patiently for the scaffolding to come down so everyone can discover this hidden oasis of French relaxation. I can't think of a better way of ending a busy day at work or shopping!