Comfort in Company: Bringing à la Bonne Franquette to the Southern Highlands

There is a saying in France: à la bonne franquette. Roughly translated, it means that things are simple, unfussy. Everything is stripped of its pretensions, leaving only that which is genuine—that which is real. No judgement, only comfort in company. 

It’s apt then, that Bowral’s Franquette Crêperie draws its name from these values.

Owners Julien and Romy Bresnard offer their clientele simple, honest food and wine, regardless of the occasion or even the time of day. What they’ve created is a place for people to relax and give themselves over entirely to Franquette’s Gallic delights.

Read on to learn how Franquette Crêperie brought to life a simple French custom and gave it to the people of the Southern Highlands.

Realising destiny

“I always wanted to make sure there was no side of hospitality I couldn’t do.”

For many of us, when we say we’ve lived our whole lives in hospo, what we really mean is that we’ve worked in hospitality since around the time we were able to legally vote. But for people like Julien Besnard—owner of Bowral’s Franquette Crêperie—this takes on a much more literal meaning.

Julien: “So I started hospitality at 10 years old, pouring drinks at the bar at my grandparent’s tabac back in France, clearing tables, meeting with customers.” 

So while the rest of us were figuring out life in general, Julien was already learning the ropes of the industry under the stewardship of family—taking it in, developing his fundamentals before taking the next step.

Julien: “I wanted to leave France as early as I could, so I decided to go to Montreal, work in some big hotel over there. My English wasn’t right there yet at this point, so Montreal is kind of a half-and-half. Then I decided to improve it even more in London. I got (made a) manager at 19 years old, which is a great achievement in the middle of London.” 

Something was missing

“The galettes, you can’t compare, because there’s none, you know. It’s not like a bacon & egg roll, or poached eggs or crushed avocado. It’s unique.”

To the uninformed eye, Julien’s rapid rise in the industry might seem premature. It is, however, a calculated route, each stop along the way another string added to an increasingly well-rounded bow.

Julien: “I always wanted to make sure there was no side of hospitality I couldn’t do. Between fine dining, to crêpes, to galettes—I worked it all. What I love about this industry is it’s a bit crazy. But once you’re in, you know, it’s hard to get out of it.”

It was during an event with him and his wife, Romy, that their eureka moment came. They saw in Bowral an opportunity to share their delicious goods with a public they knew would appreciate them.

Julien: “We used to run a big wedding venue before in Braidwood called Mona Farm. We were at a wedding in Bowral, and we just realised that something was missing here. So I’ve decided to do what I do the best—what I believe I do best—and also what I can handle, which is crêpes and galettes.”

Simple, unfussy

“We don’t judge the way you dress, if your cooking was good or not, it’s just really like, get together, have fun.”

Let’s touch again on the ethos behind Franquette, that casual, intimate atmosphere that Julien and Romy have so brilliantly cultivated.

Julien: “So basically, Franqette means la bonne franquette. You say, okay, let’s meet up on Saturday night and everyone cooks at home, and everyone brings the food to the table. We don’t judge the way you dress, if your cooking was good or not, it’s just really like, get together, have fun.”

It’s a reminder that gathering with friends and loved ones isn’t supposed to be some high affair. It has always been about keeping things casual—informal. That’s not saying there isn’t a place for formality in dining, but that place isn’t here. That place is not Franquette.

Julien: “And that’s what I’m trying to do here, basically bring the food at the table, obviously quality, but also having some parents having a bottle of wine, and then the kids having a nutella strawberry vanilla ice cream, you know?”

Transported

“You took me back for 20 minutes to Paris.” 

Where others would be inclined to err on the side of caution and offer a more traditional menu, Julien and Romy have stayed true to their ideals and played to their strengths. It also helps that the goods on offer at Franquette are exceptional, able to make you forget that avocado toast even exists.

Julien: “People in Bowral who have been to France, they talk about the butter, sugar, the lemon they had near the (Eiffel) Tower in the little kiosk. How many times I’ve heard, ‘Oh, you took me back for 20 minutes to Paris’. That’s a tick for me, yeah.”

Indeed, you could be forgiven for thinking you’d stepped through a portal, scooping you up from regional NSW and delivering you to the waiting arms of Northern France, such is the completeness of Franquette’s operation.

Julien: “Most of our wait staff—3 quarters of them—are French, so it helps. The chefs are also French, because it takes a special skill to do that. You can learn, it takes a bit of time, but we do have crêpe making schools in Brittany.”

So, if you value unpretentious food and wine, with the setting and service to match, you could do a lot worse than pay a visit to Franquette and escape, even for 20 minutes, to that long-lost afternoon in Paris.