Cook like the French on Bastille Day
Since July 14, 1789, the French have celebrated the storming of Bastille, a political prison where those who questioned the government were jailed by the monarchy. The taking of the prison set in motion the toppling of dictatorship and the birth of liberal thinking. It’s only natural that they celebrate.
And you can too. Right here in Columbia.
Chef Francois Fisera of Fleur de Lys Home Culinary Institute and Chef John Militello of Let’s Cook Culinary Studio are both offering cooking classes Friday, July 14, with French cuisine as the main course. The classes are different, but that’s the beauty of democracy: options!
Go Columbia explored the two menus.
Fleur de Lys Home Culinary Institute
Chef Francois is a true Frenchmen. Born in Monte Carlo and raised by diplomats, he has lived in Columbia for 22 years.
Most have been spent teaching hundreds of Columbians how to cook gourmet dishes. For his Bastille menu, he plans to make a lobster bouillabaisse.
“It’s the fisherman’s soup,” said Fisera. “It was (originally) made with the tails and head of fish. The women would bring vegetables. And you would cook the vegetables with the heads and tails, which creates a great stock. That was the basis of the bouillabaisse. Then you’d add garlic, and then to make it more festive, you would split a lobster on top. That’s the real story of the bouillabaisse.”
Of course his version will be a lot more refined, with jumbo shrimp, oysters and plenty of lobster.
“We sing all together the French Marseillaise (the national anthem of France), and we drink. We have fun. (Bastille Day is) always well celebrated,” said Fisera.
6:15 p.m. Friday, July 14, at Fleur de Lys Home Culinary Institute, 3001 Millwood Ave. $39 per person; wine costs extra. (803) 765-9999; www.fleurdelyscolumbiasc.com
Let’s Cook Culinary Studio
Meanwhile, over at Let’s Cook, Chef John Militello is planning a menu of six small-portioned meals.
“The food industry in the United States has adopted Bastille Day as a culinary holiday,” he said. “The menu for this week is a vichyssoise (chilled potato soup); mussels with tarragon cream; goat cheese torte with leeks; salad nicoise salad with shrimp; coq au riesling (chicken with riesling wine) and a peach and basil shortbread tart.
“It’s a lot of food,” said Militello. “They’re going to eat well.”
6:30 p.m. Friday, July 14 at Let’s Cook Culinary Studio, 1305 Assembly St. $45 per person. (803) 348-5874; www.lets-cook.wixsite.com/letscookculinary
Dwaun Sellers, dsellers@thestate.com
This story was originally published July 12, 2017 at 2:43 PM.