Could you tell us about La petite Madeleine and your cuisine?
I opened La petite Madeleine 5 years ago. We have a tea room in the morning and afternoon, and a restaurant at lunchtime, seating around 30 people. I offer a different menu every day, depending on the market and the theme of the day. On Tuesdays I always offer meat, and on Wednesdays it’s a gluten-free, lactose-free menu. A vegetarian menu is prepared every Thursday. Mondays and Fridays are decided according to what I feel like and what I find on the market. It’s a very family-friendly place. I like to cook as if I were cooking for my family at home. I prepare everything myself from A to Z. I’m very attentive to my customers’ needs and expectations. We systematically ask them whether they have any allergies or special dietary requirements, so that we can adapt our menu accordingly.
I only select quality, local, seasonal products. Either organic or from sustainable agriculture. I have four key producers at the Croix-Rousse market, all from the region. I don’t hesitate to buy vegetables that aren’t graded, or aren’t visually appealing, because they’re just as good! And I try to produce as little waste as possible.
What led you to go organic and gluten-free/lactose-free?
I’m concerned about what I eat, and I’ve found that it’s very difficult to find a bar or restaurant that offers products that suit me. I never drink brand-name soft drinks, for example. At La petite Madeleine, you’ll find organic syrups, fruit juices, teas and coffees. I only buy French “Label Rouge” meat. Therefore, people with allergies or special diets must have been in the same situation as me.
At first I had a lot of questions about how to organise and prepare these dishes, but I soon realised that many classic French dishes already met these requirements, like Chicken Basquaise for example, which is gluten-free and lactose-free! Or Beef Bourguignon, where you simply replace the flour with cornstarch to bind the sauce. I use the same method to make my chocolate cakes. You can easily replace wheat flour with rice or chestnut flour, and cow’s milk with rice or almond milk, for example.
Do your customers come to you specifically for these special menus?
We do have regulars, including a couple who have been coming every Thursday with their 2 children for 4 years for our vegetarian menu. Others don’t always understand, because they’re not used to this kind of approach. But generally speaking, we’ve had a lot of positive feedback from our customers. They are happy we think of them and they feel recognised.
We make sure that La petite Madeleine is a place where people live and talk, a place where families feel at home. We have a library section, stocked with donated books, which are made available for free. We also organise workshops, such as the writing workshop held one Sunday a month.