Le Pain Quotidien
Revision and translation (French to English)
Le Pain Quotidien is an international chain of bakery-restaurants founded in 1990 by Alain Coumont. To celebrate Le Pain Quotidien’s 30 year anniversary, Jean-Pierre Gabriel produced Tartine Confidential, a tantalising 300-page book of recipes, staff profiles and culinary anecdotes.
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My part in this project primarily involved revising Caroline Durant’s French to English translations. We worked together to tailor the recipes to an English-speaking audience, tweaking structure and adding detail as needed. I also translated several texts, including staff stories, with Caroline reviewing my translations. From sourdough through to sauerkraut, I was delighted to be able to bring my knowledge of food and experience of culinary translation to the table.
When a recent (French to English) book translation turned out to be mostly recipes with a few autobiographical notes, rather than the other way round, Hannah was one of the first people I contacted to act as my revisor.
She had come to my attention after she created the #ThatTranslatorCanCook translation and cooking challenge, and I was delighted and impressed by the expertise and insight that she brought to the task of imposing on the French recipes a format that English-speaking cooks would feel at home with. I shan’t hesitate to work with her again if a similar project comes along, and I can wholeheartedly recommend her to anyone else looking to collaborate with a colleague.