Anne Boutiaut Poulard

Anne "Annette" Boutiaut Poulard (15 April 1851 – 7 May 1931), one of the Mères of France, was known as Mère Poulard (Mother Poulard), and was a cook and innkeeper in Mont-Saint-Michel, France. She was noted for her omelette creation, the Omelette de la mère Poulard, which became a specialty of the region, and for her hospitality. Paul Bocuse wrote of her, "Mother Poulard is France!"

Early life Poulard was born Anne Boutiaut on April 15, 1851, in Mouësse in Nevers to Claude and Marie Boutiaut, who were market gardeners.

She was working as a maid for Édouard Corroyer, chief architect of the Historic Monuments, when in 1872 he was assigned the restoration of the Mont-St-Michel Abbey and moved his household there. At age 21, she met Victor Poulard, a baker's son. She married him on January 14, 1873, at Saint Philippe-Du-Roule. Uncertainty about how many travellers would arrive and when because of the changing tides made planning ahead for service impractical. She created her omelette, known as the Omelette de la mère Poulard (Omelette of Mother Poulard) made with crème fraîche and butter.

According to one account, the yolks and whites are beaten separately.

Legacy By 1932, the omelette was on the regular menu of every restaurant in the city, according to a contemporary.

In 2006 The Tribune of India referred to the omelette as, along with the Abbey, one of the city's major tourist attractions. In his 2016 book Les illustres de la Table, Simmat Burniat wrote, "with her famous omelet, she is the first woman to write her name for eternity in the grimoire of planetary gastronomy". Their epitaph reads "Here lie Annette and Victor Poulard, good spouses, good hoteliers. May the Lord welcome them as they welcomed their guests."