French Restaurant: Breizoz Crêperie

Fitzroy’s Breizoz Crêperie is a sweet, intimate French-run restaurant, whose warm, French-speaking staff provide a wonderful opportunity to rattle off a few words in French (although most of those words will be “chocolat”).

Specialising in this Breton delicacy, Breizoz’s style of crepes are light, delicate and crisp, the benefit of which, of course, is that one can work through one after another splendid concoction.

One of the most tantalising elements of the Breizoz experience is the array of French cider. Full-bodied and uniquely delicious, Breizoz’s selection of traditional cider enhances the restaurant’s cosy and rustic ambience.

The third Wednesday of every month at Breizoz is “French Conversation Evening”, une bonne occasion de rencontrer d’autres qui adorent parler la langue française aussi. A certain level of comptency is expected, il faut essayer de parler.

Located near the corner of Gertrude and Brunswick Streets, this restaurant is conveniently located on La Trobe’s own 86 tram line.

Prices are reasonable; expect to pay $20 to $25 for two dishes along with a cup of cider.

Breizoz’s entire menu is available online. Featured above is the Ratatouille and “Super Complete”. Dish to try: Beurre Sucre!

French Radio: Café Découvertes

Café Découvertes is a warm and engaging French radio series, in which a panel of experts discuss assorted figures (both historial and fictional) from various domains throughout history.

Guests often include historians, journalists and un psychanalyste in the case of the Coco Chanel episode.

Other especially good episodes include L’histoire du véritable d’Artagnan and François Truffaut, l’enfant terrible de la nouvelle vague.

Comédie: Un Gars, Une Fille

A much loved short French comedy series from 1999 to 2003, Un Gars, Une Fille spawned a spin-off québécois and seemingly continues to have a league of French fans today.

Les Blogs Politiques

To help detangle France’s complex and fierce political scene in the lead-up to the presidental election, here are some of the French media’s best and most entertaining blogs, each with their own special point of interest.

Le Figaro
Présidentielle 2012: Coulisses de Campagne
Les journalistes du service politique du Figaro raconteront au jour le jour les coulisses de la campagne électorale. Coverage of both right and left players.

Le Monde
Droite(s) Extrême(s)
Deux journalistes au Monde decryptent les populismes de droite. A fascinating exploration of right-wing politics in France. Focusing primarily on le Front National, Droite(s) Extrême(s) offers a detailed analysis of the workings of this increasingly popular party.

Marianne
Sarkofrance
Written by an anonymous author, Sarkofrance rigorously examines both Sarkozy’s reign and France’s general state of political affairs. Très bien écrit et captivant!

Le Figaro
Peopolitiquement Vôtre
Deux journalistes du Figaro examinent la vie politique actuelle où (selon eux) l’intérêt public se porterait davantage sur l’apparence et le futile, que sur le fond et le concret. En particulier, ils critiquent les médias et ce qu’il nomme le bling-bling de la politique. Parfois amusant, toujours fascinant!

French Retro Pop: Patricia Kaas’ Mon Mec à Moi

Discovered singing in a club in 1985 by Gérard Depardieu, Patricia Kaas had a series of hits off her first album, Mademoiselle chante..., including “Mon Mec à Moi”.

Patricia Kaas’ debut album
Mademoiselle chante...

Born in 1966 in Lorraine to a French father and German mother, Patricia grew up in Stiring-Wendel, a French commune on the German border, where she spoke only “le Platt”, a German dialect, up till the age of six.

Patricia became best known in France, Germany in Russia. Next year she will release an hommage album to Édith Piaf, Kaas chante Piaf, which will mark the fiftieth anniversary of the legend’s death.

Click “read more” to view les paroles (lyrics), courtesy of patriciakaas-online.fr.

Affaire DSK: le coup de gueule d’Osez le féminisme

Depuis le début de l’affaire DSK, les réactions d’une partie du monde politique, les analyses de certains journalistes et les commentaires machos que l’on peut lire sur internet choquent nombre de femmes.

Déferlement de blagues sexistes sur la toile, aucun mot pour la plaignante et banalisation des violences sexuelles: c’est ce qui motive le coup de gueule de Thalia Breton, d’Osez le féminisme.

De nombreuses femmes, mais des hommes aussi, ont contacté l’association en exprimant leur désarroi face à cette déferlante d’idées reçues. Via Elle.fr.

Image: Marianne, un hebdomadaire français qui combat ce qu’il nomme la pensée unique.

Winter Holidays: French Films

The Alliance Française Film Festival may have come and gone, but some of the finest French films it showcased will be screening over these holidays! Click “read more” for the full list.

Potiche
Now showing at Cinema Nova & Palace Cinemas
Potiche gives Catherine Deneuve one of her best roles in a decade as a trophy wife-turned-triumphant-factory boss in this sparkling adaptation of a French boulevard-theater play. Deneuve plays Suzanna Pujol, a well-off housewife in thrall to tyrannical husband Robert. When labour trouble erupts at the provincial umbrella factory that Suzanna’s father founded and Robert is taken hostage, Suzanna calls in her communist former lover Babin to negotiate with the workers.

Recette: Macarons au Chocolat avec Chocolatier Christophe Morel

In this delicious and impressive video, chef québécois Stéphane L’Écuyer presents a highly detailed demonstration of how to make macarons with Christophe Morel. Stéphane’s videoblog cuisinaire has a huge abundance of such videos, tout en français. His Tarte au sucre and Profiteroles are also especially good!

On the subject of maracons, the owners of La Belle Miette, a new French pâtisserie in Hardware Lane in Melbourne’s CBD, recently discusssed the art of macaron-making (their speciality), in this short but very delightful SBS French podcast!

For more recettes des macarons en français en ligne, Journal de Femmes has an impressive collection of manifold flavours, caramel au beurre salé and chocolat-orange amongst them.

Web Série: Lolicats on Elle.fr

A cute, funny French kind of web sitcom, Lolicats is hosted by Elle.fr, a wonderful and hugely extensive website — autrement dit, ideal exam procrastination!

The site is quite labrynthine, here are some of its finest offerings:

People: Marion Cotillard et Guillaume Canet: leur idylle en images
Société: Camille Strauss-Kahn: au nom du père
Recettes Faciles: Tarte Caramélisée aux Poires
Mode Vidéo: Leçon de mode: porter les imprimés avec Alix, créatrice de Thomsen
Livres: Spécial printemps: notre top ten livres
Cinéma: Coup de cœur film: Belleville Tokyo

Et n’oubliez pas, bien sûr, la rubrique Astrologie pour lire votre horoscope du jour en français!

French Club BBQ Wrap-Up

Thanks to the abundance of people who joined us today in the Agora for the French Club BBQ! It turned out to be the most beautiful day and it was particularly lovely to have so many people sign up for club membership!

We look forward to seeing all our wonderful new members at our array of events lined up for Semester 2: French Connection Day, French film screenings on campus, conversation sessions as ever, and much more.

Click “read more” to view all the day’s photos.