New York's top restaurants are still facing a consumer backlash because the French government refused to back America's attack on Iraq.
There have been nationwide boycotts in the USA of French cheese and wine, and some restaurants have even renamed their French fries freedom fries. But the situation has grown nasty in New York, with reports of customers refusing to be served by French waiters, and French restaurants reporting a severe downturn in trade.
French restaurant Montrachet and its sister restaurant Layla, which serves Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food, report that business was down 40-50% during the week and 10-15% at weekends in the weeks running up to and including the Iraq war.
"Some nights we had parties of single digits," said Tracy Nieporent, partner with the Myriad Restaurant Group, which owns both restaurants. "These are just two blocks away from our restaurants Nobu and Tribeca Grill, and they are doing fine. It's unusual for New York because it's such a melting pot. This kind of boycott is a relatively new experience for us."
Things got so bad that last month that a group of restaurateurs backed by NYC & Company, the city's official tourism organisation, took out a full-page advertisement in two New York newspapers urging the public to support all the city's restaurants.
"We wanted to point out that all the restaurants in New York City are just that - New York city restaurants. They have no connection with any government," said a spokeswoman for NYC & Company.
Staff at Alain Ducasse at the Essex House denied reports that it had had to close some nights, but admitted that reservations had been "scattered" over preceding weeks.
Since the war ended some restaurants have reported a slight improvement in business, and Nieporent said some customers were going out of their way to support French products.
But American anti-French sentiment is still riding high. A survey by Weber Shandwick found that 43% of US citizens were less likely to buy French products because of France's opposition to the Iraq invasion.
French exporters have reported a sharp drop in sales to the USA, and US supermarkets have postponed French food promotions.
By Gillian Drummond
Source: Caterer & Hotelkeeper magazine, 15 - 21 May 2003