Gaby Benicio now alone at the helm of Äponem
Gaby Benicio continues the Äponem adventure solo after Amélie Darvas's departure. The young woman of Brazilian origin tells us more about this new chapter.
There's been a change in Vailhan. In 2018, this small village of 150 souls in the heart of the Hérault region welcomed Amélie Darvas and Gaby Benicio to open their restaurant Äponem ("Happiness" in the Pataxo language, a Brazilian community in southern Bahia). Six years later, a new page has been turned, as Gaby Benicio takes the reins of the restaurant on her own, further asserting her desire to continue this "collective work".
Continuity through change
To continue in the same spirit as that which had already been put in place by the duo beforeAmélie Darvas left, Gaby Benicio wishes to pursue the adventure with "total horizontality in the organization of the team". "The idea is to give a real place to each person who works in the restaurant. So, everyone officiates in the kitchen and the dining room, including me. I want to demystify the image of the all-powerful chef," says the Brazilian. "I'm the keeper of the fire, but everyone contributes to the building.
Thus, Gaby Benicio, who has already been working in the kitchen for many months, instills the initial idea, but consults members of her team to develop the dishes, before participating in the mise en place and dressing like everyone else. "I have a very particular background. I first turned to literature and philosophy before discovering oenology. I don't come from a culinary background, so I don't want to be called a 'chef'. What I want is to create emotion in a kind, delicate way, and for everything to revolve around the customer," asserts Gaby Benicio.
Despite this unusual background, the young woman feels right at home, as much at ease in the kitchen as she is as a sommelier. "I think the two go hand in hand, and that a sommelier is often able to compose and interpret. My experience can only serve me well. Äponem is really my whole life, and that's not going to change. We're continuing with a menu that's always centered around plants, fed by our seven vegetable gardens, and we continue to pick our own twice-daily," she assures us. There's more to come from Äponem!
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