This Valentine's Day, it's war, not love at a local French restaurant.

The Syracuse Animal Rights Organization plans a three-day protest in front of L'Adour Restaurant Francais, starting on Valentine's Day, because the restaurant at 110 Montgomery St. refuses to drop foie gras from its menu.

Foie gras (pronounced "fwah grah") is a fattened goose or duck liver from birds that are force-fed to plump their livers to several times their natural size. The practice has animal rights activists crying foul.

"Our slogan is "Have a Heart for Animals,"' said Amber Coon, the animal rights organization's campaign coordinator. She said the protest will include video footage of foie gras production. Leaflets also will be handed out to restaurant patrons.

"Our goal with this protest is to go into negotiations with L'Adour. To get them to admit that foie gras necessitates animal cruelty and to remove it from their menu," Coon said.

The demonstration will coincide with the restaurant's "3 Nights of Romance" celebration, Thursday through Saturday. Coon said they chose to protest during an event about love because they believe in the importance of compassion toward animals.

Yann Guigne, chef and owner of L'Adour, said the restaurant will go ahead with its Valentine's Day event and foie gras will remain on the menu.

"It's one of the starters. We sell much more of everything (other) than foie gras," Guigne said. "But foie gras is on the menu and people who come here appreciate it."

In France, where he grew up, Guigne said geese and ducks flocked to their owners to be fed. He said L'Adour imports its foie gras from Canada and France, where production is more humane.

Of the animal rights group's stance on foie gras, Guigne said, "I understand their position, but I do not agree."

A bill to ban the force-feeding of ducks and geese to produce foie gras was introduced in 2005 in the New York Legislature, but went nowhere. A California law banning both the production and sale of foie gras will go into effect in July 2012.