Arlo and Janis by Jimmy Johnson for September 10, 2014

Where was this “French” restaurant? Burbank? I’ve eaten in many restaurants in Paris and in the south of France. Since I did not go to new, trendy, pretentious places (if you did, shame on you), I found the portions quite decent. In some cases, especially ethnic places, Like my favorite Portugese place in Villeomble and a North African place nearby, we were brought an embarrassing quantity of food. .The French can be suckers for the trendy, bird-size portions, just like anyone else, including tourists who think “Ooooo real French restaurant.” I can’t blame some of the waiters in those places too much. They know what sort of place it is and may treat patrons accordingly..What she can learn in Paris is that a flexible menu based always on what’s good and fresh and local that day can make the place a joy both to patronize and to work in..And if ya’ll actually like fawning student waiters harassing you continuously to show you how attentive they are and inviting you to use their first names, because they lust after your tip, you’re welcome to it. And a lot of that attention is to hustle you along to eat up and get out and make way for the next tip. I will keep the professional, career French waiter who knows how to serve and stays out of the way until needed and who is perfectly happy for you linger two hours over lunch, because he’s not trying to shake a tip out of you, and you paid for that privilege. Of course, if you act a fool of an American in his place, you will get the scorn you deserve..They might well come back inspired to run the kind of place you often find in France, run by a couple, one cooking and the other serving, and no printed menu, because the chef has to see what’s really good that day..We don’t need another nasty Chili’s or Red Lobster or Italian Garden or whatever. Of course, there’s a McDonalds in the Louvre, so it might be about time for the big asteroid to give us a shot.