CuliPersLunch 2014....lovely event where press and food meet.

I visited the Culipresslunch at Kookfabriek Amsterdam. A nice initiative that is gaining more and more status every year.

What stood out this year? BEEF !!

Some even said beef will be the new cigarette, so very political incorrect. But it tasted great!

My cookingclub! Twice a year we go about it. A full day in a professional kitchen creating complex dishes and enjoying the preparation as if a high quality restaurant.

It's a joy! More so to create it, but likewise to endeavour it.

Ancien Hôtel Baudy is the cafe-bar where the famous painter Claude Monet has passed a big part of his free time, drinking and eating with friends.

Basically this was his hometown pub. To be found there daily. Rumours go he, but more frequently others would pay the drinking bill by offering one of their paintings in return. The most beautiful of it all, it is still the uncomplicated village pub it has been for ages. With delicious plats charcuterie, andother delicious brasserie type dishes. Nothing fancy, but when sitting under the tree, on a hot summer's day, overlooking the valley like Monet must have done, this is it! Living like a god in France as they say!

81 rue Claude Monet - Musée Hôtel Baudy
27620 Giverny  

Oh, memories are build here! Original French Pièce de Boeuf, just plain, grilled, with just a pinch of salt 

The good thing about French supermarkets, yes those big ones, is that they stock a lot of high end market, high quality products. This goes for fresh veggies, but similar for wine and meat. In all, the French supermarkets are well catered for the "Gourmand" (the lover of all good food).

Steak tartare, love it or hate it. But all the French gourmands population love it.

It's not hard to understand why. It's plain and simple. There is no way to hide for the cook. But yet, one can screw it up. For example by trying to make more of it than what it is. Please! No creamy sauce, no funny things, just keep it plain and original. But FRESH! It should all be crispy, knispering fresh. Ohh, life can be good.