Convection oven, toaster oven, and hotplate

I really love our new kitchen. The convection oven, the range with a really high-powered burner and fine control at the low-end, especially the dishwasher, and the easy access to the refrigerator, with the freezer down below, and the refrigerated shelves up top, where you can see them easily. Now I know that kitchens get fancier than ours - but this is really good compared to what I am used to, and we do just fine with this setup.

In Avignon, I got a good reminder that it is not the quality or layout of the kitchen that matters - it is ingredients, understanding of these ingredients, and organization that makes for really good food. I ducked into a wine bar with a kitchen that was turning out really solid regional food - I sat at the bar which also was the kitchen, and watched as two waitresses and one cook turned out plate after plate of food for a packed room and patio - with only a small convection oven (like the kind they use at Starbucks to heat up your disgusting breakfast sandwich thing,) a basic toaster oven, and an electric hotplate. There was a commercial dishwasher as well, and a sink, but that was essentially it! They were making oxtail, toasted sandwiches, roasted marrow bones, soups, salads, plates of cheeses, escargot, beef tartare, and many other things at a breakneck pace while keeping the diners happily plied with glasses, tastes, or bottles of wine from a blackboard listing around 30 selections.

The people next to me turned out to be friendly and fun; Franck is in the cork business, selling to wineries all around France. Kris is a baker, and sells her breads out of Les Halles, nearby. They were really fun, and we ended up going out for drinks at a friend's restaurant with an American chef. It was a great last night in France before catching the morning train back towards Barcelona.

More pictures from Avignon here: