"It's not an answer just to the protesters. I'm more concerned about City Hall. It's an answer to everyone who's telling us what to do," said Terry McNally, co-owner of London Grill in Fairmount, which has served foie gras on and off since the early 1990s. "I continue to support freedom of choice."
Foie gras (pronounced "fwah GRAH") is the engorged liver of a duck or goose force-fed by a process called gavage. To animal-rights activists, including the Philadelphia group Hugs for Puppies, gavage is cruel.
To fanciers, the fowl do not suffer during the feeding, and the production is no less civil than other forms of agribusiness. Foie gras is usually sliced, seared and served as a garnish; its retail price is hard to gauge because it is seldom served by itself.
Philadelphia Chefs for Choice, as participating chefs call themselves, say it is a matter of freedom of choice, for chefs and patrons. "We do not believe that a minority of animal-rights zealots should determine the direction of our business," the group said in a news release. "Nor do we want to be intimidated by them at our restaurants or homes."
It was unclear yesterday, though, just how many chefs will participate. A list provided by the Artisan Farmers Alliance, a trade group for foie-gras producers, listed 20 participants - but a check by The Inquirer yesterday showed that three, Bistro 7 in Old City, Django in Queen Village and Osteria in North Philadelphia, said they would not serve foie gras. Vetri, owned by two proprietors of Osteria, will participate.
One participant, Rylei in the city's Mayfair section, served foie gras once, "but nobody ordered it," said Jennifer Brennan-Vargas, the co-owner. The restaurant was approached by foie-gras wholesaler D'Artagnan, she said, and agreed to join the promotion.
