There it was- Cantine California. A food truck innocuously parked in the middle of the Marché Raspail. It’s presence felt a bit like encountering a sleek house cat in a jungle safari. If not for the French language floating through the air I would have thought I had somehow stumbled back to Ann Arbor. The menu listed outside including a range of burgers made with organic free range beef and sustainable local ingredients.
Starving and curious, I took my place in the decent sized line. As I stood there, to my surprise I realised that while the odd tourist waited in front of me, the majority consisted of French people. The sight of French people willing to wait in line to eat a messy burger while standing up at makeshift wooden …show more content…
While you can still find haute cuisine, it isn’t difficult to also grab a casual yet delicious meal at a corner cafe. Cantine California was the first of its kind in Paris, but the food truck idea is catching on and an exploratory soul can find these elusive creatures scattered around the city at locations which change daily. While the food is coming from a truck rather than a small cafe, it bears a closer resemblance to it’s French heritage than it’s American inspiration. Using quality ingredients and excellent presentation it retains an elegance not found in the typical American food truck. This food truck movement is unlike the McDonald’s chain where American food and culture was directly supplanted in Paris in the 1970’s. These food trucks are retaining the essential French spirit of quality ingredients, local sourcing, personable atmosphere, and a beautiful finished …show more content…
As happens in compromises, these changes are highlighting the essential elements of French food.
This synthesis offers a new lens to see French food standards and products. In a world of mechanisation, food trucks offer a kind of spiritual sense to the process of eating. There is the feeling of connection, grounding, comfort, and presence in the simplicity. In the alienation of our modern mechanised capitalistic system, consumers are separated from the products they consume. Eating in such a down to earth manner with the owner of the truck handing you your burger there is a sense of honesty and transparency to the process.
Maybe because I spent 7 years on my families organic self-sustaining farm I’m a bit biased, but I think it is extremely important to have an understanding of where your food is coming from. Rather than just an amount of calories, the food that we eat should be thought of as a kind of story. There is a history to each dish and a story for how that meal came together to