At the restaurant La Cachette de Mamé, in Grau-du-Roi: “We control costs by working on our products”

Philippe Hérimian (left), after creating La Cachette, at the Marché du Lez, in Montpellier, settled in Grau-du-Roi, where he launched La Cachette de Mamé, whose kitchens are run by Pascal Court (right). Midi Libre – MICHAEL ESDOURRUBAILH

How to set the prices of the menu without scaring away the customer. This is the delicate equation that this restaurant, firmly anchored on the shores of the Gard port, is trying to answer.

The restaurant La Cachette de Mamé, on the port of Grau-du-Roi, is one of those restaurants that, quite logically, focus on offering dishes based on seafood. And for good reason: Philippe Hérimian, a local boy, has his connections at the fish market, where he knows many local fishermen. With Pascal Court, his chef, he draws on this proximity to concoct the establishment's menu.

“We can clearly see that people don't necessarily have a lot of means, he explains. Either we increase our prices and we don't have many people left, or we tighten them and we can hope to work well". He takes the example of his 35 euro menu. "Logically, if I had to apply the real price, it would rather be 39 euros. I stay at 35 euros by reducing my margin”.

“All the ingredients have increased over the past 3.4 years”

If he insists on explaining that a “A trader also works to earn a living”, he admits to “taking the lead” in pricing his dishes. “We try to mix products that have high prices and others that have less”, explains Pascal Court. He takes the example of side dishes.

“All the prices of the ingredients we work with have increased over the last 3 or 4 years, he explains. Whether it's meat, fish, vegetables, not to mention electricity and gas, which we consume a lot of. So, to avoid the costs being too high, I combine vegetables with different prices, but, above all, I weigh them. This is the best way to not be too high”.

“Our luck is that we are open all year round”

It is difficult to be in an approach that would necessarily allow us to satisfy consumers who are increasingly careful about the price of dishes. “But we are like them, like any household, insists the chef. We pay attention to what we buy. Especially when you see that the prices of our raw materials have increased by 5% to 10%".

Philippe Hérimian never stops hammering it home: "Le Grau-du-Roi is a popular destination, we must keep prices attractive and employ local fishermen". He believes he has an advantage: "our luck is that we are open all year round, so we smooth out our activity, but also that we work the products ourselves, which allows us to control the costs”.

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