PETA—People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals—will hold a protest at 6 p.m. tonight in front of Cafe Rolle in East Sac.
The reason for the protest? Cafe Rolle—owned by Frenchman William Rolle—serves foie gras, a French delicacy that’s made from the enlarged livers of ducks and geese that have been force-fed.
Linda Middlesworth, president of the Sacramento Vegetarian Society and a local grass-roots PETA activist who organized the protest, expects about 15 to 20 people to show up, holding signs, passing out flyers and showing a video of foie gras production. “It’s disgusting,” she said.
She said this will be the first of many protests targeting local restaurants that serve foie gras. “The Firehouse is next,” she promised.
A local foodie called me to sound off about the protest, which she thinks is unfair. “It’s his culture,” she said, noting that there are plenty of factory-farm practices that are far crueler—and more worthy of protest—than the production of foie gras.
She was going to try to round up some foodie friends to eat at Cafe Rolle tonight out of solidarity for the embattled Frenchman. But apparently Rolle is taking a typically Gallic pffft! approach to the whole affair. “He said the flyer doesn’t look very professional,” she reported. “He doesn’t think it’s a big deal.”
Cafe Rolle, located at 5357 H St., has been jammed ever since it was featured on the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives,” hosted by Guy Fieri, earlier this year.
