Arthur Lecomte X Pierre Fierens: a restaurateur, a breeder, a collaborator

Tartare, rib-eye steak, rib-eye steak, ribs... At a time when most chefs are betting on vegetalizing their plates, the menu at Bien Élevé stands out. The Parisian restaurant has a credo: eat less meat, but better. For several years now, the restaurant's co-founder, Arthur Lecomte, has relied on Ferme de Châteauneuf in Audincthun, Pas-de-Calais, to offer exceptional beef, with total traceability and transparency.

Feeding, rearing, slaughtering, cutting, processing, delivery... everything is taken care of by the farm, which leaves nothing to chance. To find out more about this very short circuit collaboration, Gault&Millau put a few questions to Arthur Lecomte and Pierre Fierens, General Manager at Châteauneuf.

How did you meet and why did you decide to work together?

Arthur Lecomte: Before we opened, I saw that most restaurants were offering meat from Argentina or other countries, and I wondered why we weren't doing the same thing with French meat, when there are plenty of good breeders. But often, the volumes requested by restaurants are too large, so few farms can meet our needs. Finally, it was while talking to butcher Yves-Marie Le Bourdonnec that we discovered Ferme de Châteauneuf. We went to meet them and their way of doing things matched our values.

Pierre Fierens: For my part, I arrived at Châteauneuf after we started working together. But more than that, I'd say we're partners! I think that's a very important word. When you're a breeder, you have to ensure that you have outlets, because an animal lives with us for at least three years. It's invaluable for us to have restaurants with whom we can work on a long-term basis.

How are the animals raised at Ferme de Châteauneuf?

A.L.: They are fed healthy food, no junk, with a special nutrition protocol at the end to develop the right fat. Initially, there were two breeds: Angus and Limousine, but things are evolving.

P.F.: In fact, we now have four breeds on the farm. Angus, Normande, Salers and Simmental beef. In all cases, they are raised according to traditional methods, with progressive growth of the animals. Calves are reared with their mothers, and cattle are kept outdoors as much as possible. We feed them exclusively with products from the farm, such as beet, and of course grass from the pastures. We're located between the Boulonnais and Ternois regions, both of which are ideal for grazing! In total, we have 110 hectares for around 250 animals.

How do you go about slaughtering, cutting and processing?

P.F.: Here too, we pay close attention to animal welfare. We're lucky enough to have a slaughterhouse close by, with fifteen partners, in which we've taken a stake. On the farm, we have a cutting plant, which gives us full traceability, and we make our own deliveries. We chose to integrate all the systems because, by going through distributors, it's not certain that our project will be passed on in the right way. Our meat costs a certain amount, and to get the most out of it, we have to explain the system properly.

A.L.: For our part, we order halves or quarters of animals and do a small butcher's job directly on site, in the restaurant. We also have a maturing cellar so we can do everything ourselves.

Not having an intermediary also facilitates communication with the restaurant?

P.F.: Exactly! When you have the boss or the chef on the phone, the dialogue is direct and the message is not distorted. This makes for more fluid exchanges.

What's the economic impact?

A.L. : The fact that we don't have any intermediaries obviously reduces costs. I wouldn't say that our meat is cheap, but that it's fairly priced. Here, a matured rib of beef will cost €100/kg. That's almost the same price as in a good butcher's shop, even though it's served cooked and accompanied. Today, the relationship is all the more important as I've bought out part of the farm. I'm a minority shareholder, of course, but I felt it was important to contribute to the creation of an economically viable industry. In the long term, I think that people will eat less meat, but in a better way, and the offer should become "premiumized", a bit like what happened with beer. Today, consumers know what a blonde or a pale ale is, and it will be the same with different cuts of meat and origins.

Pierre, do you have time to go to Paris from time to time to eat at Bien Élevé?

P.F.: Whenever I can, yes! And every time I do, I go for the basse-côte with beef fat fries!