Elle was four years old when her mother died in
France, leaving her Father widowed to raise her and three brothers
by himself. Unfortunately, at that time, the government of
France deemed widowed/single fathers unfit to raise children on
their own. This caused Elle and her brothers to be sent to an
orphanage.
Although, the young girl did not understand why
she had been taken away from her Father and three brothers, her
experience created courage and independence. All the while,
Elle's Father, Roger François Moisdon tried to get them out of the
orphanage. With the help of a very aggressive nun with child
credentials, the sister came up out of the blue and said that; "God
had put it on her heart to help Roger get his children back."
Elle said, "It was divine intervention!"
At the age of seven, Elle's father being an
inventor, decided to move to the land of opportunity -
America. Elle remembers waiving good-bye to France as they
boarded the original Queen Elizabeth for the ship's last voyage
across the Atlantic. As they approached America, they
saw the Statue of Liberty with her torch held high. Elle
said, "When we docked, my father was telling us the story of how
France gave the Statue of Liberty as a gift."
The family settled in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
where Elle grew up in a house full of gadgets because of her
inventor papa. Being originally from France, Elle did not
speak a word of English, with the exception of "book and yes." She
worked hard to learn the English language by studying the
dictionary at night using a flashlight. A little book about
French food and wines became her constant companion. As her
book collection increased, here interest of fine food and wine
became evident. Although Elle got her cosmetology license at the
age of 18 and practiced for six years she was also involved in the
hotel, food/wine business all through college.
While living in Key West Florida, working by day
as a hairdresser and by night as the assistant manager of the Pier
House restaurant in the Marriott hotel, she also became Miss 1980
Key West.
A move back to Miami brought about a job at
Regine's, a private celebrity restaurant. Elle took great interest
in the cuisine and was inspired by the chefs because she loved to
cook and had been cooking since she was nine years old.
Then it was off to California, where she worked
for a French company 'Woltner wine importers'. Elle was also
a student at TWA flight academy and became a flight
attendant. Later, she worked at the Beverly Wilshire
Hotel in Beverly Hills. Inspired by the numerous wine
functions in the Los Angeles area, Elle decided to move closer to
the wine country in Napa Valley where she attended culinary and
wine classes while working for first class wineries like Opus
One. Then she became a certified wine sommelier and teacher.
Being from France, seeing Bistros on every
corner, she always wanted to have her own restaurant/ Bistro.
Elle opened a restaurant called Misto in downtown Napa Valley. It
had unique flavors and sauces and became immediately successful.
As a Christian woman from California, Elle
stayed grounded in the word for over the last decade studying with
Pastor Arnold Murray at Shepherd's Chapel Ministry.
Because of the importance of her faith, Elle get
up at 5a.m. Monday through Friday for a chapter-by-chapter bible
study.
Elle has always loved the state of Texas, so she
moved about an hour and a half east of Dallas to a small town
called Emory. At that time, she discovered a small building on the
southeast corner of the downtown square, which was first, an old
service station, then for many years, Circle H Barbeque. Elle
said, "the building was so cute, I totally fell in love with it."
She decided to open a new restaurant called
Chateau Bistro. Moreover, her goal has been to create a
dining experience using unique dishes with a casual elegance of
indoor/outdoor dining just like in Paris, France. She enjoys
serving people with a warm smile and a welcoming atmosphere.
As for the potential to fulfill her dreams in this small town, this
city girl with a country heart said four parting words, "I love it
here."
Chateau Bistro
