Poutine, a classic French-Canadian delicacy is the newest victim of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. People have been hating and calling out Russian President Vladimir Putin since the start of the war. Unfortunately, the dish is receiving a lot of backlashes.
The dish is Poutine, not Putin
The world is expressing its anger against Russian President Vladimir Putin. It is on the rise as the Russian army is inflicting pain and trying to wreak havoc. Unfortunately, Poutine, a French-Canadian dish is a victim. A delicacy made up of potatoes, gravy, and cheese curd is receiving hatred due to the similarity in its name. Not only the dish but, the restaurants that serve the dish is also becoming a target of hatred and protest. Maison de la Poutine, a restaurant with branches in Toulouse and Paris stated that it is receiving insults and threats following Russia’s invasion.
“It seems necessary for us to recall that La Maison de la Poutine is unrelated to the Russian regime and its leader. Our dish was born in Quebec in the 1950s. And the stories to tell its origin are numerous. But one thing is certain: poutine was created by passionate cooks, who wanted to bring joy and comfort to their customers,” tweeted the company. “The House of Poutine has worked since its first day to perpetuate these values and today brings its most sincere support to the Ukrainian people, who are courageously fighting for their freedom against the tyrannical Russian regime,” they added. (https://picklelicious.com)
Restaurants pull the classic dish off their menus
The controversy with the name is also forcing restaurants to pull the dish from their menu. Le Roy Jucep is distancing its company from the name. They are going to describe it as “the inventor of the fries-cheese-gravy”. “Dear clients, Tonight the Jucep team decided to temporarily retire the word P**tine from its trademark to express, in its way, its profound dismay over the situation in Ukraine,” they explained.
Surprisingly, it is not the first time a potato dish was between a controversy. Back in 2003, the French government’s resistance to the war in Iraq led restaurants to call Frech fries ‘freedom fries. As one Twitter user explained, “People, please stop confusing Putin and poutine. One is a dangerous and unwholesome mix of greasy, lumpy and congealed ingredients, the other is a delicious food”.