Monday was the big day: For the first time, kale is consistently featured in the popular lunch spot, Jour.
Already a kale lover relayed the response of a Jour employee when asked for verification…
“C’est quelque chose qui s’appelle ‘kale'”!
It’s an establishment popular with the office crowd but since I don’t work in an office or live relatively near one of the locations, I’d never checked it out. Plus the idea of “make your own salad,” isn’t really a novelty to me, having overdosed on many make-your-own salads during too-late with too-little time lunch breaks in New York.
The news of their launch of kale hit late last week with this write-up in Elle, but I’ve known since late-November the launch would be in the new year. A woman who works in Jour’s communication department emailed me wondering if I could consult her on the upcoming in-store marketing.
This was my dream! I was finally going to be talking about advertising for a product that I love. After years advertising financial products and sugary kid cereals, I would be able to give my opinion on how kale would be presented to the Parisians! I mean I wouldn’t really consider myself a “kale-consultant,” but I guess for France, it could work.
Here was the catch: Madame Jour only speaks French. So I took a deep breath with my verb book and dictionary by my side, called her and scheduled a rendez-vous in French.
As usual, it worked out. I met her in La Defense (another story-that place is like the Twilight Zone and I hope I never have to go back) and we chatted for two hours about kale, the communication and the plan for the launch. I don’t think I was very eloquent while speaking and it was frustrating to not be able to fully express myself about two areas that I love so much – kale & advertising. I did provide the suggestion that including the word chou as part of the description might not be the best idea – which it looks like they took.
During yesterday’s visit I added edamame, green beans and avocado to my raw kale with a caesar dressing. After purchasing, I took a few photos because I knew I would want to share the in-store marketing. Unfortunately, this did not go over too well and I was immediately yelled at and told to leave. But… I was able to capture a few shots. I also love that the employees are all wearing buttons that say, “We <3 Kale.”
As for the salad, here are my thoughts. I give it the grade of B.
It’s late in the season and kale, being a tough vegetable, is always tougher this time of year and this was very noticeable in the salad. People massage their raw kale salads for a reason, no? My worry is that for kale-virgins, they may be turned off by the tough, bitter leaves due to a lack of massage! Only time will tell and I did send a note to Madame Jour with this suggestion.
I still am so excited about this launch and really hope that it will be well-received by the French.
If you’ve tried the kale at Jour this week, I would love to know your thoughts. Send me your photos and thoughts via email or share on Facebook!
Ann says
I don’t know what’s more exciting — your participation in this awesome kale venture or the discovery of a make-your-own-salad bar in Paris! :)
kristen says
I know! I love that the concept of “salad bar” is a concept here. It makes me giggle!