Transcultural Devon interview with Florian 2025

So, good afternoon Florian

Thank you for participating in my
interview

Could you please start by introducing
yourself and telling us a bit about you

Yes, I am Florian, I am 33 years old

I have been in England for 6 years now

I grew up in the South of France
with my Mum and Dad who were fishmongers

Up until 19 I was working with my Dad
then I left France

I left to go and work in Australia

and then Australia is where I met my
wife, well who is now my wife

an we decided to move to the UK
7 years ago now

and yeah, now it's been 5 years since we
opened our restaurant

That's great, and why did you decide
to move to Devon?

Because my wife is very close to her
family

and she didn't want to go further than
England

and for me it's because I know how to
speak English

my wife knows how to speak English

and Australia is harder to immigrate to

so we chose England

And did you have any knowledge of
English before arriving to England

or did you learn it when you arrived here

No, I learnt English when I arrived in
Australia

when I was 19/20 I left for Australia and
my English was really bad

It's still not very good if I'm being
honest

I still have a quite French accent

but I learnt it in Australia when I was
20

so when I arrived in the UK, I already
spoke English

Ok, and did you notice that English
language in Australia

is a bit different to the English here
in the UK

maybe in terms of slang and expressions
and things like that

Yes, the expressions, yes exactly

then there were people from the outback
or rural areas

and you know the rural people,

sometimes they were really hard to
understand

but they didn't understand me either

so we didn't understand each other

it was a bit like that

but I think the English are bit easier
to understand than the Australians

their a bit lazy the Australians

and how was settling in here?

Did you feel welcomed, or were there
moments you felt like an outsider?

maybe in comparison to Australia,
for example

No not at all

I think the English like the French a lot

I think we've have always been
good neighbours

so no I've never felt any discrimination

there are some people who often don't
make the effort to understand me maybe

but that happens everywhere

it's because it's England

for example, if I'm on the phone and I
I make an order

things like that

sometimes I have to repeat myself 5, 6
times

but that is also down to me,
because my accent is terrible

but apart from that, no

everything is going well

and have you met other French people
in the Devon area?

is there a noticeable French community
here?

because I don't know myself

well I have a restaurant

and I have a few French people
that come in who are...

how do you say

regulars

I've forgotten the word in French

who are, well yeah regulars

but otherwise yeah there are some French

but I wouldn't say its a big big community

but yes yes a few of them yeah

and so with your wife

and maybe in your restaurant as well

what is the main language that you speak

always in English

always in English

with my wife she wants me to speak
more in French with her

to learn French

but it's hard because when we work
together,

when we have to do things together

it's a bit hard to always speak in French

it's easier to work in English

so no it's english, exclusively English

and would you say that it was more your
wife who helped you learn English

when you arrived in Australia

yes, it was my wife

when I was in Australia

In the beginning I worked with French
people

in French restaurants

and there was only French people

so I didn't need to speak English

but later on, I set off to explore
a bit

so I had to speak English

and when I met her

I wanted to win her over

so I had to learn some words in English

and so yeah, she helped me learn

but in the beginning it was a bit like
sign language that I would use with her

and then she helped me learn bit by bit

and now I am bilingual thanks to her

and is she bilingual as well?

Does she speak a bit of French?

she speaks a bit in French

she understands

she understands very well if people
don't speak too quickly

but she is not bilingual

but she understands french yes

and just out of interest

do your family speak English as well?

no, no one speaks English in my family

so just French

Yes

Ok

and what do you like to do in your free
time

when you are not managing your restaurant

Well, we don't have a lot of free time

but when we do, we try to go out in Devon

on the tarcatrels?

we have bikes

go for a bike ride

we like to try the restaurants that
are around us as well

because we also like to be the clients
you know

so yeah we're enjoying a good life here
in Devon

the sun is usually shining

so yeah, we've got enough outside
let's say

have you found any favourite spots
in Devon

that maybe you like to visit on your
days off?

do you feel that it is a bit similar to
the South of France?

I'm not sure specifically where your
your from in the South of France

No, it's completely different I think

I come from the South of France from
Montpellier

which can be one of the big cities

here it's a very small town where I am

Bideford

and even so the biggest city that there
is near us is Exeter

which is not next to the sea and is
very very far

well around 45 minutes

as you know as you are there

but no, no I like going to Peppercombe
beach

it's a little beach which isn't too far
from here

around 20 minutes in the car I think

there is also a good campsite that we like
going to

that we go to often

It's called Nethercott

and there's also Barnstaple as well

so yeah, we go camping and go on
little outings to the beach

we have 2, 3 spots that we like yeah

but it doesn't ressemble France at all,
it's completely different

yeah I can imagine

and what was the biggest challenge
for you

coming to live in a different culture?

and how did you overcome it?

maybe it was the language

yeah it was especially in Australia

I think the difficulty in the beginning
when you are boss

when you are the big boss

and you have to get your team to
understand

and talk to the supplier

sometimes its a bit frustrating

because for example if I absolutely
need something

I'll make my evening order for the
following morning

the next morning it arrives

and its not at all what I ordered

they have sent me something else

so for me, I have to change the menu the
night before

all that you know

so it was more in the beginning

but otherwise here, since i've been
in Bideford

I haven't had a single big problem,
let's just say

I want to say as well

the biggest hurdle to overcome was
Covid-19

because we had just opened the
restaurant before Covid

so it took us about a year before
we had to close for a year

just at the time when we were opening

so it wasn't great but we managed
to get past it

and were still open so yeah it's ok

Yeah I wanted to ask you how Brexit
affected you guys

but I also think Brexit it was maybe
the same year I think

I think it was 2020

but I imagine that yes with Covid it was,

particularly with a new restaurant
it wasn't easy to get the word out

But yes, I would love to talk to you
about your restaurant

because as I've said, I think both
are linked

So, before speaking about it

I wanted to ask you

what drove you to this career?

Did you grow up cooking a lot
with your family

I know you said that your parents
are in the industry

Yes, so my father is still a fishmonger

So when I was little I worked with him

because my primary school was next
to his shop,

so when I finished school I would
go there

and I would stay there until he closed

then I would go home with him

so I learnt about fish, how to fillet
fish since I was little

how to open oysters, how to cook

because he had a catering side as well

so I started with my father

and yeah after that I did my
apprenticeship with him

and so yeah I think

well lets just say, my destiny was mapped
out in this direction

since I was little this is what I was
led to do

and what inspired you to open
'Le Petit Monde' in Devon?

for example was there a precise moment

that you knew that it was here that you
wanted to do it?

because I don't think there is a ton of
French restaurants here

well, there a few but yes,
not really a lot

but actually we were looking when
we cam from Australia

we worked in London

and then after 2, 3 years

we had saved a bit of money

and wanted to open our own restaurant

and we searched a bit of the
surrounding areas

we wanted a restaurant that was
small enough

so that we could manage it just
the two of us

we wanted a restaurant that was close
to the sea

and a restaurant with an apartment above

so that we didn't need to travel
or commute to work

So it took about 3 years to find
the right place

We viewed restaurants in Brighton

we viewed restaurants in the North

in Cumbria

we went to Falmouth in Cornwall

we visited a lot

and in the end we found this restaurant

that was exactly what we were after

so it was more practical that we
chose Devon, Bideford

because we fell in love with it

and because it ticked all the boxes
for us

you said that you worked in London

how was it different in London, compared
to here?

maybe regarding the aspects of hospitality

and the restaurants

in London, being a chef makes you
want to pull your hair out

and the commuting takes up a lot of time

I dont think that being a chef or a cook
in London is a good career

except if your in something exceptional

like as a head chef in a small restaurant

I definitely prefer to be working in
Devon, for sure

and even if I didn't have a restaurant,

even if I worked for someone else,

I would prefer here for sure

and obviously your restaurant is called
'Le Petit Monde'

and I saw on your website that you
have written a little description

about why it is called 'Le Petit Monde'

but I wanted to ask you yourself

what does it this name mean to you and
your kitchen

well it was really about finding a name
that spoke to us

well, you haven't been to my restaurant
yet

and I hope you will come one day

but it's a little restaurant, I only have
8 tables

and it's been 5 years since we've
been open

and everyone that generally comes now,
know each other

we know them

and yesterday we were invited to eat
at one of our clients

who comes in all the time

so now we're in our own little world

a small family

so we wanted the restaurant to be
like that

something familial

so the little world of Florian and Lydia,

it's all the people that come to eat
at ours

and to have a good time really

that's really nice that you have created
a little community with your clients

your cooking is a bridge between France
and Devon

Do you think that your food can serve
as a universal language,

to build connections across cultural
differences

everyone loves to eat

I don't know anyone that doesn't
love good food

so even if someone arrived, and
they weren't happy

and then they eat something good

they will be happy when they leave

and it's the same with everyone

the people that come here

they want to have a little taste

what we do in France, and what I do,

I mostly do French dishes

and yes I think that there are people

that have never tried frogs legs,
for example

and they come to my restaurant,

and they try it,

and maybe they have never tried it

they've gone elsewhere

but because our restaurant is so small,
and welcoming

so yes I think that cooking can break
down barriers

and do you think that your relationship
with food

has changed since you left France?

and how has your way of cooking
and eating

evolved through exposure to a
new culture

because obviously here in Devon,
in general

I think it's marked as a place, that
is really known for its seafood

and there is maybe a resemblance
from where your from in France

my father was a fishmonger and
fish caterer

and here I cook fish a lot

so It's really the same thing

as it's my restaurant, I decide
everything I do

I create the menu

so It wasn't really a massive shock,
in terms of that

I found it a bit difficult to find
fish suppliers

which is weird as

England is a little island

surrounded by sea water

and when you don't find any fish

it's really bizarre sometimes

but no apart from that, it wasn't really
a shock

It's what I was doing in France, but I'm
doing it here

and have you ever had to adapt a dish

to please the British?

and was it difficult?

or was it more of a creative challenge?

no it's not difficult

it's just a matter of judging and knowing

what the English like and what they hate

and they won't even try it

then won't even taste it, they will just
hate it

and it's just a case of trial and error

I think is what we say in English

to know how to do it, to observe,
and to listen to the critiques

for example, something as simple as

every time I have an argument with my wife

because of that

but I do a lot of 'Bouillabaisse'

and the 'Bouillabiasse' is served with
a 'rouille' sauce

'rouille' is a saffron-coloured
mayonnaise

and every time, in France it goes with it

there's no other question, it goes with it

but here when I do it, and I put rouille
with it

99% of the time, they don't want to
eat the sauce

even if we explain what it is

they don't want to eat it the sauce

so now I don't put the sauce anymore

so that's kind of how you reacted

if someone came to eat at a French
restaurant

and they want to remove the part that
is French

Yes exactly,

if it happens once or twice,

it doesn't bother me

and I say to myself that they just
don't like it

and don't want to try it

but when it's 9/10 people, that don't
even taste it

I just decided to take it off

and it's just easier

and they are more happy

so yeah, that's just an example.

I was also interested by your facebook
and instagram

and I noticed that

on one of your posts

you commented underneath

"locally sourced scallops with a
French touch"

and it's really this part of the sentence
that interested me

and so what do you mean exactly by this?

is there a distinctive way to prepare
this French dish?

whether it's in terms of technique,
ingredients or presentation

maybe it's linked to authenticity
for you?

yes well, for example,

scallops is something that is quite
popular in France

very popular

I would say it's more popular in France
than in England

and indeed the fisherman are battling
it out

between France and England to
get their hands on them

and lets just say that the scallops
that I do

I don't think I've seen them anywhere
on any menu in places I've been

and I look at menu's a lot

because it's my job and it's my passion

so here, what I think you're quoting here

it's for example, just flambéed in cognac

It's a French classic

classic French scallop puff pastry

something like that

and flamed with cognac

that's what people come here for

they are impressed by this

because they have never tasted it before

so yes it's things like that

it's a bit difficult to say just one
thing,

just one recipe to describe

what French cuisine is,

but it's just technique,

techniques that you wouldn't
generally find that often

you can find it, but not often

so yes, I think that people, especially
our clientele

who are majority people between the ages
of 40 and 70

who have spent a lot of time in France

so they know a little bit

and they are happy that it's memories
from their holidays

from when they were just kids

or when they would take their kids
on holiday to France

and well, here they find the pleasure and
the taste

that is very interesting that the
majority of your clients

is between 40 and 60

yes well, it's Devon as you know

it's not very populated

and it's Bideford as well

in Bideford most of them are pensioners

or people who work from home

so yes I would say the majority of
our clientele is 40 and 60 years old

and for example, with a British dish

I don't know like a roast

beef wellington

oh yes beef wellington,

how do you change this dish, so that
you add a French touch

because I saw on your menu that you
have a roast,

or that you had a roast,

and you changed it in the way that you
prepared it

so I was interested by that

With the roast, we haven't done this here

I don't do a roast, but I do steak frites,

lamb shoulder, pork cheek, beef cheek

we make things like this

but for example, speaking of wellington,

we did this for Valentines day

we did a Monkfish, do you know Monkfish?

yes, yes

Monkfish Wellington

it's the same concept as Beef Wellington,

but instead of beef,

you have Monkfish.

It's a dish that is both French
and English.

People loved it!

They wanted to try it because it's
a Wellington.

I don't know anyone who doesn't like it.

So yeah, we do a little

Anglo-French twists like that,

to please everyone.

And also, for me,

to have fun!

I love experimenting,

it's fun to see how people react.

So you like to experiment?

Yes, yes!

And do you travel often?

If so, have you ever taken a dish
from another culture

and given it a French touch?

Yes

Australians love their squid.

In Australia they eat a lot of it

I learned some techniques there,

because I worked with Australian chefs.

It's not really dishes, but rather,

techniques that I have kept.

But that's what being a chef is.

You learn every day.

When I discover something,

and it smells good,

I want to try it.

So I try it in my kitchen.

If it's good quality,

I make it again, and that's it!

So yeah, that happens.

I know you told me that it's difficult
sometimes

to have access to fish,

but how do you get French ingredients
in Devon?

for example, with cheese or other
products have you found...

Well, I know you said it's difficult to
find local suppliers.

Maybe your family import them
for you?

Or is it too expensive?

Oh no, it would be too expensive to import
things like that from France.

I learned recently that with the UK
no longer being part of the EU,

everything has become more expensive.

So, I try to work with English products.

Not French but English.

But for example, instead of buying
French duck,

I buy English duck,

which is just as good.

That's just an example.

But I would say that...

Do you think that takes away

some of the French aspect of the dish?

Not really.

If you want, for example,

Toulouse sausage for a cassoulet,

you can make them yourself.

They won't be from Toulouse,

but it'll be almost the same.

Apart from a few ingredients that I miss,
that I can't have,

like foie gras,

I love foie gras.

At the start of the restaurant,

we had foie gras on the menu, that came
from France.

But overnight,

we couldn't get it anymore.

I searched all over the place, as there
are some people that do it here.

And it just wasn't the same quality,
it wasn't good,

so I preferred not to put it on the menu.

But then there are things you can find
just the same,

or pretty similar,

or recreate it to make it feel more
French.

Like snails, for example,

you can buy them here or in France,

it's exactly the same.

So, was it easier to import these products
before Brexit?

Oh yes, absolutely.

So you think Brexit has had an impact
on your business?

Yes, of course.

It has affected all businesses,

unfortunately not just ours.

it's also affected the fact that,

for example, I have been trying to find

a sous-chef for four years...

Impossible to find one.

Maybe if Brexit didn't happen,

there would be more foreign workers
here in Devon,

trying to find work,

to have a better chance at opportunities.

So no, it's not a step in the right
direction.

It's cost a lot.

I dont think Brexit was the best idea,

but that's not the focus of the
conversation.

Certain dishes are tied to the idea of
'home'

and nostalgia.

Is there a recipe that instantly takes
you back to France?

And, conversely is there a taste that
you've discovered here,

that now represents your life in the UK?

I wouldn't say represents,

but something so simple and so silly,

like steak frites.

Steak frites is something I have done
since the beginning and,

every time I have taken it off the menu,

people have kicked up a fuss and
complained,

so I had to put it back on the menu.

And for me too,

when I make a little steak frites
with salad,

it reminds me of when I used to go to the
brasserie

as a teenager with my friends,

having a beer and steak frites.

So yeah, I think that steak frites,

even if it's a bit basic, it's the first
thing that comes to mind.

Also as I've already said I make
Bouillabaisse.

I make things that are very very French.

Do you think that there is a certain
expectation,

maybe from the English,

that in all French restaurants there
is steak frites?

Certainly, certainly yes

it's funny because there are also people

that expect you to give them free bread,

because if you were to go on holiday to
France 20 years ago,

they would give out bread for free,

but nowadays no one does that anymore,
not for 20 odd years now

The bread that I buy from the bakery,

it costs me quite a bit of money.

So if I start giving out free bread,

I'll go out of business obviously.

Some people have an idea in their
head,

and when they arrive,

and it's a French restaurant

they'll think that the waiter, for
example

something that occurs quite frequently,

people think that we are not French
because,

they speak to my wife, who is front of
house,

and they go, "oh so you're not French?"

and she says, no I'm English but my
husband is French.

and so they calm down a bit

and they understand that it is a real
French restaurant

and that it's not just the 'name'.

And so yes, I would say steak frites is
French,

I am French,

So I will say my restaurant is mostly
French.

People enjoy that and they come here
for that as well.

And on the subject of stereotypes,

I don't know if you have ever heard
the expression,

"You are what you eat"

which maybe suggest that food defines
a culture.

In France, for example sometimes,

we call the English "Les Rosbifs"
(Roast beef)

and in England, the French are often
associated with frogs, and snails etc.

What do you think about these
associations,

between food and national identity?

and do you think that food really
represents a culture?

or do you think it's a cliché?

No, I think it's part of a culture.

For example, if you ask a lot of French
people

if they have eaten frog legs or snails,

I'm sure 80% will say no,

they haven't had them this year.

However, if you're talking about Roast
dinners in England,

90% of people in England will have one
on a Sunday.

And we tried to open on Sunday's,

but we're actually closed on Sunday's,

because we tried for a year and a half

to open on Sunday's

and no one, no one.

They all wanted to go to the pub to
have their Roast.

They didn't want fish, they didn't want
steak frites,

no they wanted their Roast.

So I would say yes and no,

how do you call it again,

the stereotypes,

yes the French love their baguette,

but it's not for that reason that we eat
frogs.

I wouldn't say that you are what you eat,

because I don't know what they eat all
the time.

I think with the English we are so
traditional like that,

we always have a roast on a Sunday.

We are like creatures of habit.

I think it's great,

because it gives you a day where
you are together as a family,

to see the grandparents, to see the
children,

things like that, so I think it's great.

And the majority of Roasts when you go to
a pub,

it doesn't cost too much,

it's like 10, 12, 15 pounds,

so it's also an opportunity for the
English to

go out on a Sunday, which they wouldn't
normally do.

Here they would have to pay around 50
pounds

for a restaurant meal, so...

I think the Roast is a cliché that is
really true for the English,

but the frogs isn't a cliché for the
French.

And in your opinion,

do you think that food can help break
down stereotypes

about foreign cultures,

and create bridges between communities?

Yes definitely,

As I said to you earlier,

those who have empty stomaches,

and you give them something to eat,

afterwards they are happy.

And I think that when you have someone,

who is difficult, or doesn't come from
the same background as you,

or doesn't even speak the same language
as you,

like me in Australia.

When you find yourself around a
table,

and you're eating all together,

there is an opportunity to talk and
get to know one another,

to see the bigger picture.

So yes, I think it opens doors.

Food opens doors, like for me

I was a chef,

I cooked,

I met my wife because she loved my
cooking.

She first spoke to me because she adored
my food,

and now we've been married for
10, 12 years.

So there you go.

She was English, I didn't speak English,