It’s British, But It’s Good

My favorite Paris metro ad of the week is for McVitie’s Digestive Biscuits, a round, flat cookie made in England. The ad reads “C’est anglais, mais c’est bon.” It’s English, but it’s good. The comedy lies entirely in the choice of conjunction.

What’s funny about this ad is how succinctly it expresses the love-hate relationship between the English and the French, the food snobbery which is both tongue-in-cheek and a little for real.

My husband James remembers eating McVitie’s by the tubeful as a child, when his family lived in London. “Eclairs au chocolat they’re not,” he says. “But they’re cheaper.”

Contrast this ad with the one next to it, for Four Roses whiskey. Superimposed on a (not-quite-realistic) rendition of Mount Rushmore are four roses, with a picture of the whiskey bottle at the center. Another one shows Four Roses in Monument Valley, the iconic setting for Westerns. A recent campaign for Jack Daniels whiskey proclaimed “It’s not whiskey, it’s not bourbon, it’s Jack.” The large text was in English, with small print at the bottom translating it into the French.

It’s not as if the French are going to give up their Calvados and Armanagnac, but they like to mix things up. All bars here will serve you a Kir (sauvignon blanc with a drop of cassis) as the classic French cocktail, but more and more are offering American-style ones, importing everything including the names. Sex on the Beach, on the Champs Elysees, anyone?

In the window of Pim Kie, a clothing store on my block, a mannequin wears American-style denim short-shorts that are meant to look “street.” Yet she pairs them with impeccable espadrilles and a tailored jacket slung over her shoulders. The look is perfect, if inappopriate for the season. Maybe she just needs to warm up with a little Jack.