The Paris office has been undergoing a renaissance of sorts for the past month, and not necessarily in a good way. The Renaissance, which as many likely know translates to “rebirth,” began in 14th century Italy before spreading across Europe – but did you know that the word “renaissance” is actually French? Why we do not refer to this time period in the language of the country from which it came – that would be “rinascimento” – is beyond me. Unless…maybe it is because Italy (as we know it today, and not a collection of individual states) was unable to adopt a standard language until the 1860’s, after the wars of unification swept the peninsula. Although…the stage was set for what we know as Italian in the 16th century, when both the Accademia della Crusca and a gentleman from Venice named Pietro Bembo succeeded (on some levels) in pushing out some accepted linguistic models based on the dialect spoken in Tuscany. Except, really…the stage was set even before all this if we go all the way back to the 14th century. That’s when Florence made the decision to get powerful and influential, and also when Dante Alighieri, poet of the same city, wrote the instant classic, the Divine Comedy (yes, even in the Middle Ages there were instant classics). These two variables set the stage for the Accademia and Pietro, who set the stage for Italian – sometimes called the language of Dante in France – to climb to the top of the language heap post unification. So why do we call this enlightened age of Europe the Renaissance instead of the Rinascimento? I don’t know, either.
The office renaissance has been going on for a month or two, and there has been very little in the way of painted masterpieces. However, another feature of the Renaissance – the rebellion from classic, formerly accepted sources – was in effect. Transition at the peak of organizational leadership was nigh, the frustration of the masses growing and a rebirth of attitudes and practices necessary. This need was formally recognized by an invite sent out to our leadership team, of which I – to the amazement of countless, to be sure – am part of.
Leaving work early is always a pleasure, especially when the promise of a chef’s hat awaits. For tonight our team would not only dine on some fine French cuisine, but we would make it ourselves! In a nod to the importance (and elusiveness of?) of teamwork, the company coordinated an evening with the good people at EAT-SENTIVE, and in fact I would encourage you to coordinate one of your own should you ever happen to visit Paris. For the next couple hours we would be hanging out in a kitchen, cooking up a quadruple course threat under the guidance of several EAT-SENTIVE chefs. The menu for the night – accompanied by various cocktails Norah and I concocted, learned from our friendly chefs – read as follows:
- Tartar of salmon, ricotta cheese with dill, stewed peppers & green vinaigrette.
- Filet of chicken stuffed with mushroom and foie gras cinnamon juice
- Chocolate cake with orange cream (doesn’t this sound increasingly stellar in French? – fondant au chocolat, crème anglaise a l’orange)
The appetizer was bizarre in the context of the entire menu…if one recalls the Pillsbury dough that comes in a tube, it was basically that with hot dogs wrapped up inside of them. I love both hot dogs and Pillsbury dough, but one must admit it’s a struggle to piece that into the above menu. My theory is that when EAT-SENTIVE heard that Americans crashing the party they panicked – “What do Americans like for dinner? Ah, bien sûr! Dough and hot dogs!” – and it was only fitting that I spent a large part of the evening preparing this little appetizer. A second team took care of the salmon, while a third took turns bashing chicken with a rolling pin in order to flatten it out. My team had fondant and hot dog responsibility, which never should one take lightly.
Dinner – both the preparation and consumption of – was incredibly enjoyable. It is always nice to see people outside the confines of professionalism and deadlines. All too often we come to view those we work with as relentless e-mailers, always demanding our time and sometimes stealing our desk toys. If you ever find yourself raging upon a co-worker, just picture him or her with a big white paper chef’s hat on, a drink in one hand and a mixture of chives and basil in the other. Maybe that will help out.
