There will be no French fries but plenty of lentils offered to athletes attending the Paris Olympics, with organisers this week unveiling a food selection that combines eco-minded recipes with French gastronomy.
Based in a vast former power station, the food hall includes six different dining areas offering meals from around the globe, with half of the 50 dishes available each day being 100 per cent vegetarian.
“People are going to meet here in France, with its culture, its heritage but also its gastronomy and so there are expectations,” chief Paris 2024 organiser Tony Estanguet says.
“We’ve allowed ourselves to put French gastronomy in pride of place so that curious athletes from around the world can try French culinary excellence,” Estanguet adds.
The giant warm-food buffets will not include French fries, however.
“For technical reasons, we can’t offer fries,” says Estelle Lamotte, deputy director of village catering at food group Sodexo.
She explained that deep-fat fryers were not allowed in the temporary kitchens at the site, which is usually used as a film studio.
Gregoire Bechu, head of sustainable food at the Paris organising committee, stressed the quality of the “delicious” lentil dal recipe that has been developed for athletes.
“One of the major commitments by Paris 2024 was offering vegetarian meals in order to halve the carbon footprint of each meal on average,” he said.
“We wanted vegetarian meals everywhere.”
At sports venues, 60 per cent of food offered to fans will be vegetarian and the temporary stadium hosting skateboarding, BMX and breakdancing at the Place de la Concorde in central Paris will be entirely meat-free.
“I think we’ve found a good compromise between offering the right temperature but also reducing our carbon emissions,” Estanguet says. “It’s one of the main challenges of the Paris 2024 edition.”
In a break from Olympic tradition, the 2,800 flats at the village do not come with air conditioning as standard. However, many Olympic teams have decided to install portable coolers at their own cost.
The Paris Olympics run from July 26-August 11, followed by the Paralympics from August 28-September 8.
