I have always been a Julia Child fan and watched her French Chef show growing up.
Many of her shows are now available on YouTube and I find them sometimes quite funny. I like to think Julia and I have a few things in common.
Besides both being raised in Southern California, I went to culinary school in my later years, as she did. Julia attended the revered Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, France. I attended Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Pasadena, California, located just a few blocks from Julia’s childhood home. Many of you know Pasadena for the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl. They also hold an amazing flea market at the Rose Bowl – considered one of the best in Southern California. And for all us Big Bang Theory fans, the show is set in Pasadena.
Here is a photo of me standing in front of one of Julia’s childhood home taken by a classmate with my iPhone. Pretty cool, huh? Julia was a prankster as a child. One of my favorite stories of Julia is the one about how she would prank her younger sister by locking the doors and not letting her back in the house. Then, when she did let her in, Julia would pretend she didn’t know her sister and threaten to call the police on her for trespassing. Oh, Julia… I guess I find it funny because I too have a younger sister and can relate.
My business name, Roux de Loo, is a take on the name of Julia and Paul Child’s apartment in Paris, France. The apartment where Julia began testing recipes for Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Because it was a top, two-floor apartment at 81 rue de l’Université, they wittingly and affectionately referred to that apartment as “Roo de Loo”. I affectionately and, I suppose, wittingly, used the culinary term of Roux for “Roo” to denote a culinary awareness of my business. Hence, Roux de Loo. I hope Julia would have approved.
Bon Appétit!