So Monsieur Buffan retired to a tiny castle for twenty years in order to surpass his culinary mentor. Eugenie, the cook, and Pauline, the neighbor’s girl, who has a refined sense of smell, assist him in these delights. However, the characters, circumstances, and relationships are clarified here between the case that has become the passion of a lifetime and has finally reached its heyday: “Napoleon of French cuisine” is preparing for a new triumph!
Advertisement
The morning begins with a visit to the vegetable garden and a careful selection of vegetables. A light breakfast on the table, cluttered with game and herbs, serves as a prelude to a culinary mystery, in which the host plays the first violin, the cook replaces the symphony orchestra, and the baby replaces the audience. The action calculated by the minute does not tolerate fuss and idle talk; only the taste and fate of cooked, cooled, refueled, baked, fried, whipped and carmelized dishes are unconditional.
The consultant of the painting is one of the best chefs, 14-star (according to the Michelin guide) Pierre Gagnaire turned cooking into a detective quest with several paradoxical denouements: the author of the folio offers recipes, the cook solves the plans, and the cook reads the essence. However, the visualization of the mystery is much more interesting. As if casually, in the transparent-airy pastoral light borrowed from the little Dutch, a sketch of a wonderful still life is prescribed, which crumbles into magnificent culinary “art objects”, folding into a table solitaire draped in Rembrandt twilight. The serving is overshadowed by pompous dinner companions — strained clever and courteous provincials — a lawyer, a banker and a doctor; the guests who have enjoyed themselves guess that they were invited by the “Napoleon of Cooking” for some fun…
