At age 26 he opened his first restaurant – and a very innovative one! Ten years later, his 5 businesses are thriving and he has plans for yet another one that will offer a completely new dining experience. Young Chef Julien Duboué has let his businesses grow steadily, with help from family and friends. He was able to give life to countless new ideas, and today he wants to share his experience with future cooks.[...]

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When asked « How did you get into cooking ? », Chef Eric Guérin answers without a moment’s hesitation: “through art !” – a surprising, yet perfectly accurate answer ! A childhood spent around artists made him familiar with this environment, and today he is still connected to it – on a daily basis when he sketches his dishes, and more generally as he strives to make painting, sculpture, poetry, and theater, enter his restaurants. [...]

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Many come to cooking for want of a better option. Then for some it becomes a true passion… This is what happened to Yves Camdeborde, who after being a self-confessed « good-for-nothing teenager » became a cooking nut. A nice one however – a reasonable and generous man all about helping and sharing. In 1990 he opened the now-famous La Régalade (Paris 14). Later, he opened Hotel Relais Saint Germain, restaurant Comptoir du Relais and the 3 Avant-Comptoirs (Paris 6). Feeling « very much a blessed man »,[...]

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They are odd-shaped, odd-sized or ugly, and considered unfit for human consumption, but these fruits and vegetables can indeed be used and cooked, inspite of their weird looks! Chef Shéhrazade Schneider has decided to use only these products that traditional standards reject. They are no longer trashed, and find a new life in her creative and tasty cooking at her restaurant Simone Lemon in Paris. She has thus created a new model of sourcing, a model in which nothing is wasted, from field to table.[...]

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How does one live in a civil-war-torn country? What can bring together people of different communities, cultures and religions, who only yesterday used to kill each other? What universal language should one use to bring together a divided, multi-faith population? In order to take part in rebuilding his native Lebanon, Kamal Mouzawak chose a common, vital need: food. For more than 10 years, he has created places where people can exchange and interact peacefully.[...]

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Chef David Royer spent 10 years in Finland, a country that many consider a model for environment protection and well-being. This was an inspiring experience, for his cooking as well as for his commitment to nature. He came back to France with a desire to always respect the seasons, the local products that come with them, and the producers who provide these.[...]

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With international roots and a lifelong love of cooking and the sharing it implies, Niki Kopcke has created a restaurant business like no other: Mazi Mas*, in London. As a feminist and an activist, she was able to put her ideals in practice via her business. She creates jobs and offers them to women who otherwise could not find employment. The results are spectacular for these women: jobs, gains in confidence, empowerment, life changes.[...]

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Bistronomie or Haute Bistro : the low-key and friendly atmosphere of a bistro with the high quality of haute gastronomy. Chef Stéphane Jégo has been practising this mix since he opened his restaurant L’Ami Jean (Paris, 7th arrondissement). While one of the goals of this movement is to make good, well-cooked products affordable, Stéphane Jégo is also using it to favor the social inclusion of people in distress.[...]

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For Chef Jean-Pierre Vigato, a cook’s job is not always an easy one, but cooking is relaxing, and gives great pleasure! He became familiar with this pleasure when he was quite young, while sharing meals with his family. And today, he still wants to share and spread this pleasure, with his family, his associates, and his clients.[...]

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Elevé dans le respect de la nature, le Chef François Pasteau s’est toujours senti concerné par la préservation de notre planète. Dans la cuisine de son restaurant mais aussi au sein d’organismes militants, il a à cœur de mettre en œuvre des actions bonnes pour la Terre, « une cuisine soucieuse de l’environnement. »[...]

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