Pretty sure the image of Betty is a tribute to David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. Lynch died in January of this year, and I think that he was particularly well received in France. This shows Picard is willing to highlight not only the weird things about America but also the highly esteemed things as well.
Wow, thanks for that information! You're right that David Lynch was particularly appreciated in France, and I just read that Mulholland Drive was produced by a French company and he won Best Director at Cannes for the film.
I haven't seen any Lynch films since Blue Velvet, which was traumatizing. I really don't do well with graphic violence (especially toward women or children) in films.
These Picard engineers also have the challenge of coming up with new food trends every year, ones that even most Americans haven't tried. Fast food rarely does anything new, and Picard likely couldn't directly cop, say, the McRib or the burger king chicken fries. So you have to go into permutations of bizarre internet trends, and it just ends up odd. I should offer them my "Cook's County Eats Local" which offers regional American recipes like "Texas caviar," new Orleans muffulettas, West Virginia "pepperoni rolls," and Hibbing's "iron range porketta." But I wonder if they're trying to truly dig deep into what food culture the US has... or just copy surface-level trends and use it to lightly mock the US. (And if they really wanted to roast us, they'd compare the nutrition label like you did. That's the biggest difference I see.)
Picard's "hello America" campaign reminds me of traveling with my children in the UK or any European country. When eating out, the kids happily ordered something with an American name, only to be disappointed, often bitterly disappointed, when it wasn't what they expected. It may have a detail wrong (still a deal-breaker) or that it was nothing at all like the American food.
Re deep dish pizza: I grew up near Chicago, and went to college there. Picard's deep dish pizza closely resembles the real thing, at least in the photo. It would have been more authentic with spinach or sausage along with the cheese. It's so good!
Finally, burger buns dyed black with squid ink? Maybe in addition to your pandemic honeymoon it was offered at someplace like Nobu in NYC, but never ever, I bet, in the Midwest.
The bitter disappointment for many Americans in French restaurants is ordering a steak or a burger and finding it "raw" by American standards. I've never seen a burger in France that ISN'T bright pink, not just in the middle but everywhere but the seared outside edges. Steaks come in four levels of cooking: "well cooked," which is equivalent to an American medium; "just right," which is medium rare; "bloody," which is rare; and "blue," which is still cold in the middle.
Je sors de chez Picard où j'ai fait le plein de surgelés : cabillaud, épinards, haricots plats. Je reconnais que les vitrines Hello America sont plutôt repoussantes mais il faudrait avoir l'avis d'adolescents ou de jeunes...
Yes, that's an excellent point: they are definitely aiming much of the campaign toward young people, and most of the reviews I saw online (people doing videos on TikTok or Instagram) were young people.
Interesting combinations of “American” foods. I totally agree that the dishes say more about how the French (or Picard) perceive what and how Americans eat than actual American food. Although, we in the US are definitely not tied to any one cuisine and therefore willing to try anything.
If you want to be horrified by what Americans will tolerate in processed food, check out the book “Ultra-processed People.” It will make you doubly appreciative to have easy access to Picard’s real food.
I hope Americans don’t eat that much sugar. When I envision a French meal I see a large plate with a 2” diameter beef patty, then 3 string beans on the side. I know Americans eat too much
Pretty sure the image of Betty is a tribute to David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. Lynch died in January of this year, and I think that he was particularly well received in France. This shows Picard is willing to highlight not only the weird things about America but also the highly esteemed things as well.
Wow, thanks for that information! You're right that David Lynch was particularly appreciated in France, and I just read that Mulholland Drive was produced by a French company and he won Best Director at Cannes for the film.
I haven't seen any Lynch films since Blue Velvet, which was traumatizing. I really don't do well with graphic violence (especially toward women or children) in films.
These Picard engineers also have the challenge of coming up with new food trends every year, ones that even most Americans haven't tried. Fast food rarely does anything new, and Picard likely couldn't directly cop, say, the McRib or the burger king chicken fries. So you have to go into permutations of bizarre internet trends, and it just ends up odd. I should offer them my "Cook's County Eats Local" which offers regional American recipes like "Texas caviar," new Orleans muffulettas, West Virginia "pepperoni rolls," and Hibbing's "iron range porketta." But I wonder if they're trying to truly dig deep into what food culture the US has... or just copy surface-level trends and use it to lightly mock the US. (And if they really wanted to roast us, they'd compare the nutrition label like you did. That's the biggest difference I see.)
Look up Papa Del's Pizza in Champaign, Illinois. I'm Illinoisian and consider that "real" deep-dish. Yes, it's usually that cheesy.
Picard's "hello America" campaign reminds me of traveling with my children in the UK or any European country. When eating out, the kids happily ordered something with an American name, only to be disappointed, often bitterly disappointed, when it wasn't what they expected. It may have a detail wrong (still a deal-breaker) or that it was nothing at all like the American food.
Re deep dish pizza: I grew up near Chicago, and went to college there. Picard's deep dish pizza closely resembles the real thing, at least in the photo. It would have been more authentic with spinach or sausage along with the cheese. It's so good!
Finally, burger buns dyed black with squid ink? Maybe in addition to your pandemic honeymoon it was offered at someplace like Nobu in NYC, but never ever, I bet, in the Midwest.
The bitter disappointment for many Americans in French restaurants is ordering a steak or a burger and finding it "raw" by American standards. I've never seen a burger in France that ISN'T bright pink, not just in the middle but everywhere but the seared outside edges. Steaks come in four levels of cooking: "well cooked," which is equivalent to an American medium; "just right," which is medium rare; "bloody," which is rare; and "blue," which is still cold in the middle.
Wow! I didnt knew that before 💝
Hello Jean,
Je sors de chez Picard où j'ai fait le plein de surgelés : cabillaud, épinards, haricots plats. Je reconnais que les vitrines Hello America sont plutôt repoussantes mais il faudrait avoir l'avis d'adolescents ou de jeunes...
Hello Marie,
Yes, that's an excellent point: they are definitely aiming much of the campaign toward young people, and most of the reviews I saw online (people doing videos on TikTok or Instagram) were young people.
Interesting combinations of “American” foods. I totally agree that the dishes say more about how the French (or Picard) perceive what and how Americans eat than actual American food. Although, we in the US are definitely not tied to any one cuisine and therefore willing to try anything.
If you want to be horrified by what Americans will tolerate in processed food, check out the book “Ultra-processed People.” It will make you doubly appreciative to have easy access to Picard’s real food.
I hope Americans don’t eat that much sugar. When I envision a French meal I see a large plate with a 2” diameter beef patty, then 3 string beans on the side. I know Americans eat too much