California Gorges on Foie Gras Ahead of Ban
California will ban foie gras sales starting Sunday. Meanwhile, goose-liver lovers still have time to enjoy foie gras jelly doughnuts at Umamicatessen in Los Angeles.
Chefs there and around the state are counting down their foie gras days by putting it anywhere they can. Some plan foie gras finale feasts on Saturday night. Others offer foie gras in cotton candy, cheesecake, waffles and toffee.
“It’s a very difficult thing to say goodbye to,” says Michael Cimarusti, co-owner and chef at Providence, a celebrated Los Angeles restaurant. He plans to leave a gap on his menu in memory of the dearly departed, with the notation: “formerly a foie gras dish.”
The foie frenzy harks back to 2004, when California lawmakers bowed to animal-rights groups and passed a ban on foie gras sales, giving restaurants more than seven years to get over it.