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Guy Savoy in 5 dishes
To better understand and appreciate Guy Savoy's culinary universe, Gault&Millau invites you to (re)discover 5 emblematic dishes from his career. And no, artichoke and truffle soup isn't one of them!
Guy Savoy, a great name in French gastronomy, has left his mark on culinary history with creations as refined as they are innovative. over the course of a career spanning several decades, he has managed to evolve while preserving the unique identity of his cuisine, which is both audacious and deeply rooted in French tradition. While his legendary "Artichoke Soup with Black Truffle" has been a staple at his eponymous restaurant (5 toques) for 35 years, he has chosen not to include it among the dishes that bear witness to his evolution, regarding this masterpiece as timeless. Gault&Millau therefore takes a closer look at five other emblematic Guy Savoy creations, each marking a key stage in his culinary career, revealing a perpetual quest for excellence and reinvention.
Oysters
Guy Savoy goes back in time, forty years, to tell us about his Oysters, revolutionary for their time. "I found oysters impractical to eat. You had to bring the shell to your mouth, and then the water ran everywhere... So I came up with the idea of making a jelly out of them," he recalls. "I'd make a lightly lemony and peppery purée, where I'd place an oyster, before adding my jelly. I had all the elements of the shellfish, while changing the consistencies. It's a recipe I still make regularly, adapting it as time goes by. This autumn, I'm combining a crushed oyster with olive oil, chives and a seaweed and lemon granita."
Lentil and langoustine light cream
In the 1990s, Guy Savoy created one of his signature recipes: the light cream of lentils and langoustines. "I was making a fumet with langoustine heads, which I found to have an exuberant flavor, even too brutal. So I wanted a system to tame this snack," the chef tells us. "I came up with the idea of marrying this fumet with a lentil purée. The taste of the langoustine was respected, without the overly aggressive aspect of the fumet", he assures us.
Pan-fried mussels and mousseron
In the early 2000s, Guy Savoy pioneered a new kind of dish, combining the flavors of land and sea. "At the time, I remember having a problem with the taste of mussel juice," he laughs. "I found the iodine very dry! So I added mousseron, a fatty mushroom with a very good consistency, which marries wonderfully with the flesh of the mussels", maintains the chef from La Monnaie de Paris. "The mousseron juice attenuated the mussels' pronounced iodine content. I simply adjusted the seasoning with a little pepper and lemon."
Vasco de Gama duck
For this fourth dish, Guy Savoy chose a very recent creation, dating from this year 2024. "It's a duck breast matured for two and a half weeks with a mixture of spices. It is then cooked very gently to retain the chewiness of the duck, but with a softer texture. It is served with a very short jus, made from carcasses and spices. As a garnish, we add mini eggplants stuffed with duck legs. The result is something very original, where the slices are served thick enough to feel the consistency under the tooth", he sums up.
Coconut
For the last dish in this selection, Guy Savoy chose to talk about... a dessert! "I'd like to talk about Coco. It's a dessert that takes into account dietary constraints, with no added sugar or gluten, but that plays on several textures, with softness and crispness, but also on temperatures, with cold and warm. I love it!"
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