He has only been running a restaurant for a year. But Fabien Ferré is already doing what most top chefs can’t do in their entire lives: he’s getting three stars.
He couldn’t believe it. When the testers of the Guide Michelin, the bible for gourmets, awarded the highest award in the French restaurant scene, they also had a man on the list that hardly anyone had expected, least of all himself: Fabien Ferré. The 35-year-old Frenchman received three stars straight away – and with them the merits that other chefs fight in vain for all their lives.
“I’m not that good at speaking,” said the newly elected on stage in the congress hall in Tours, “I’m better at the stove.” Then he put on the chef’s jacket with the three embroidered Michelin stars and was feted by his brigade. “I never imagined I would be standing here with the greatest honor,” he said. He is now one of an exclusive circle of only 138 three-star chefs (as of 2023) worldwide.
Ferré is no stranger to French gastronomy. He completed his training in the best restaurants in the country. For years he had been cooking alongside Christophe Bacquié in the restaurant La Table du Castellet. The restaurant is located in the five-star Hotel de Castellet, directly on the motorsport racetrack of the same name in Provence. Bacquié was also awarded three stars in 2018, but quit last year and passed the baton to his sous chef Ferré.
The menu includes langoustines with rhubarb
“I knew that he would win this award one day,” said Bacquié in Tours. “But I didn’t think it would happen so quickly.” Bacquié calls his protégé a “brilliant boy” who is always looking for a deep, balanced flavor cuisine.
In fact, Ferré has only been running La Table du Castellet as head chef since the change of leadership a year ago. For the Michelin Guide, the change in management of the restaurant is equivalent to a new opening and winning three Michelin stars straight away is extremely rare. In the past 30 years, only three chefs have achieved this feat, most recently Arnaud Donckele from the Cheval Blanc restaurant in Paris in 2022.
Ferré is one of the young generation of top chefs who specialize in regional cuisine using seasonal ingredients. He offers two menus, prepared primarily from regional products from Provence. His specialties include fish and shellfish, such as Norway lobster, which he serves with rhubarb.
The passion for food and high-quality products is in Ferré’s blood. He comes from a family of pastry chefs and farmers from Burgundy. He also presents himself and his profession on social media, such as Instagram, where he provides insights into his kitchen work and the current menus.
No woman among the highest award winners
500 top chefs from France were invited to the Michelin Awards ceremony in the Loire Valley. Gastronomy is part of France’s cultural heritage and is part of the national identity. The neighboring country traditionally attaches great importance to its top-class cuisine. However, according to many observers, this has fallen behind in recent years. Too old-fashioned, not dynamic enough.
According to the Michelin Guide, the 2024 vintage is evidence of a renaissance: “French gastronomy is not a thing of the past,” Gwendall Poullennec told the French broadcaster France3. “We no longer just rely on our culinary heritage.”
2024-03-19 04:25:25
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