The owner of ParisPerfect apartments, which I know some of you are familiar with, is going into the cooking school business. Here is her first offering. Looks wonderful, doesn't it?

Award Winning Chef Christian Constant Premiers Cooking Class!

Christian Constant, winner of a coveted Michelin star, will host a demonstration cooking class at his famous restaurant Le Violon d’Ingres on Monday, March 7. Learn the secrets of preparing delicious dishes for entertaining friends and family. Chef Constant will limit attendance to twelve students to give everyone maximum visibility and interaction. Attendees will come away with recipes for preparing a mouth watering, elegant meal that is deceptively easy to prepare. Importantly, you will come away with excellent cooking tips from the master who has trained many of the renowned chefs in France. M. Constant’s star has been rising for many years, as the Executive chef for four years at Le Crillon’s 2-star Les Ambassadeurs, as head chef at The Ritz for 8 years and Ledoyen for 5 years.

The menu will consist of starter, main course and dessert that are bound to impress friends, but that utilize simple techniques so that they can be prepared by time-constrained and less experienced cooks. The class will enjoy a tasting of the dishes with wine after class.

Enrollment is on a first come, first served basis so sign up now.

Date: Monday March 7, 2005
Time: 9:30 to 14:30
Location: Le Violon d’Ingres
135 rue St. Dominique, Paris 75007
Price: € 185
Metro: Ecole Militaire or Pont de l’Alma

Reservations: [email protected]
Questions: [email protected]

ohmigod, I SO wish I could do this!!!
Not only do I admire his culinary skills, but I have kind of a crush on M. Constant. When I've seen him at le Violon, he's just so, sigh, y'know, <u>French!</u>

He's also considering doing other classes such as four ways to prepare foie gras, a delectable dietary menu, and others. Mmmmmm!

tt...because there are only a handful of places left, and maybe some new Fodorites would enjoy this.

It does sound wonderful.

And your post smacks of advertising &quot;just a few places left...&quot;

Christian Constant Cooking Class from the owner of Paris Perfect.

Alliteration addiction, anyone?

BTW: What is the meaning of that familiar, elusive and pesky metaphor, violon d'Ingres? A second string to one's bow, I'm guessing.....

Hi
Le Violon d'Ingres gets its name because the painter Ingres loved to play the violin, and considered it at one time as a career.
The chef/owner of Le Violon, Christian Constant, hails from the same home town as Ingres

But it's not just a reference, it's a figure of speech. Can anyone fill me in on its broader use?

it is used to indicate a hobby, a passionate avocation

Tedgale: Your question made me curious, so I just did search, online and on paper. According to my French-French dictionary, &quot;violon d'Ingres&quot; is an expression meaning an artistic hobby, an artistic activity that one engages in outside of one's normal profession. The painter Ingres played the violin. &quot;Violon&quot; is also a word for &quot;rape&quot; (from the verb violer). There's a photo by Man Ray called Le Violon d'Ingres, and the title is apparently a play on words. The nude woman in the phot has the curved shape of violin slits painted on her back. http://www.ocaiw.com/galleria_nudo/g...161&amp;id=280

That's Kiki in Manray's photo.
bonjourparis.com has an article on this cooking class.

A response from the owner of Paris Perfect when I inquired about the cooking class with Msr Constant:

It was decided that they would limit the class to 12 so that guests can watch everything he does. She will be translating all of his information during class as well as providing English translations of the recipes.

They will go to the market to find the best ingredients and then prepare the best recipes.
Since everyone seems to be watching their weight - he will keep calories in mind as well as taste. Of course the students will eat the dishes he has cooked and there will be plenty for a meal.
The price is extremely reasonable at 175E -- much less than Patricia Well&acirc;s $1,000 for the same number of hours. &quot;
There are indeed openings as of today, I think it would be great fun, a unique experience, especially for someone who has been to Paris a few times and wants something different. We are considering it.

For some reason, I read &quot;cooking class with christian conTENT, and I opened the thread, wondering how could religion be involved with cooking classes...

&lt;&lt;&quot;cooking class with christian conTENT, and I opened the thread, wondering how could religion be involved with cooking classes&gt;&gt;

A Lenten meal maybe? Or traditional French Easter dishes? Finishing with liqueurs made by monks?

P.S. to the language question: It's also the name of a symphony orchestra (in addition to the other meanings mentioned above). See: http://www.everything2.com/?node=Le+Violon+d'Ingres