VIDEO. We visited the Market Garden City of Romainville

At the Cité Maraîchère de Romainville, vegetables, herbs and mushrooms are grown without chemical agents or synthetic fertilizers. Very short circuit for the Cheffes restaurant, located on the ground floor of the building. “We are on the 6th floor of La Cité maraîchère. We find chard, black radish. There are turnips, borage, shiitake mushrooms and oyster mushrooms. I check in with the cultivation manager and he tells me what is ready. And in relation to that, I draw up my map” explains Hawa, the chef. “We have 500 square meters of surface area to cultivate. We only use compost, possibly black soap, for aphids. We only use biodefense, if not other insects, to help us. No chemicals, no synthetic fertilizers” specifies the head of culture, Etienne Sahy.

“I visited it, I said to myself: “Wow, actually, there need to be market garden tours everywhere”

“The “Cheffes” project was born from a call for projects from the town of Romainville, where we applied and were successful. We still needed an eco-responsible philosophy, which we have. For us, it was obvious to occupy the restaurant of the Cité Maraîchère. (…) Obviously, we have a “Marketplace City” prize, a roommate prize” declares Hawa, who is supported by Lauranne, the pastry chef, and Léa, the room manager. At the Cheffes restaurant, the menu changes every day. Two starters, two main courses and two desserts are offered daily. “We wanted to work in a short circuit and offer dishes that were not too expensive so that everyone could come and eat” indicates Lauranne. For a main course, count on 10 euros, for a starter-main course or main course-dessert, 13.50 euros and for three, 18 euros.