Zut, Alors!

Bittman, a New York Times food critic, laments that it is becoming harder and harder to find good food in France, as many restaurants are increasingly using frozen and imported ingredients and products. "Restaurants in the home of la grande cuisine have become much like they are elsewhere. If you want a meal out featuring great ingredients prepared fresh and with skill you can find one, but you have to be very diligent, very lucky or willing to spend big; the vast majority of restaurants disappoint." Bittman says that the government's attempt to combat this growing trend by using a label to show whether the food was made in house or not, unfortunately, isn't working. "The ruling will not help consumers distinguish between a vacuum-packed salad made thousands of miles away (vacuum-packed foods are exempt) and one made with tomatoes grown 20 feet outside the kitchen door."