Spotlight on these showcase chefs' kitchens
No longer do we hide the ovens we can't see - quite the contrary! The kitchen now opens up to offer a show for the audience. Depending on how it's laid out and arranged, the show doesn't have the same flavour. After the close-up, let's take a look at what's on display in the window.
The dripping praline under the cap of a Paris-Brest makes us long for more. Or the bouncy, shiny texture of an artisanal vanilla flan that makes our mouths water. Fashionistas notwithstanding, patisseries are undoubtedly the shops best suited to the notion of window shopping. This activity, which is initially good for morale, relies on new phenomena of curiosity: chefs, in this case their kitchens. This is a far cry from the days when chefs were confined to the basement. The kitchens have moved up a floor, and have now opened up to the dining room, and even to the street! Now, if you pay even the slightest attention when you walk, you can spy on the preparation of gourmet dishes without even having reserved a table. Welcome to the age of the chef in the window!
Here are three restaurants where you can watch chefs in the kitchen from the street:
Mallory Gabsi
Since March 5, 2022, when he opened his first table, this former Top Chef contestant's restaurant has been packed inside and out. Thanks to the recommendations of architect Arnaud Behzadi, Mallory Gabsi takes pleasure in preparing his dishes under the curious and admiring gaze of passers-by, who can't help but be attracted by the play of light sculpted by the shop window and raw façade.
3 questions to Arnaud Behzadi, the architect who designed the Mallory Gabsi restaurant
Given her TV career, was Mallory Gabsi's restaurant window essential to echo her appearance on Top Chef?
A.B : Mallory is a singular personality for his humility and sincerity. At the outset, he had no desire to be in the spotlight. He felt he still had to learn the ropes in the kitchen before he was allowed to display himself in such a way. So I convinced him with other arguments, such as bringing light into the room. In the end, within days of opening, Mallory told me he was delighted with the arrangement.
Why did you want to offer a privileged view of the kitchen from the outside?
A.B : I've always wanted to highlight the work of people. And when it comes to gastronomy, I believe that the poetry of the plate begins in the kitchen. The brigade's gestures and movements are like a broom. In fact, you can watch the cooking and the preparation of the dishes from the street.
At a time when cooking has become a spectacle, doesn't this type of layout also offer the opportunity to appreciate a chef's work, even when you can't afford to eat in his restaurant?
A.B : Whether you're a chef or an architect, our work has a social dimension, because we create emotions. The connection starts outside. You also have to create a link between the street and the team. Cooks have a tough job. This layout allows them to work in the light. My professional approach is never to shut people in.
MoSuke by Mory Sacko
Mory Sacko has nothing to hide, and certainly not his talent, which he puts on display for all to see, even passers-by, thanks to the two large windows that welcome customers to his restaurant in the 14ᵉ arrondissement. All the cuisine of the young Gault&Millau 2020 talent, who orchestrates a tasty bridge between African and Japanese culinary influences, is thus on full display, all the better for the fact that it has just been enlarged following work carried out in June 2023. A structure separating the ovens from the rest of the room ensures that customers are not bothered by noise and odours.
La Dame de Pic by Anne-Sophie Pic
This was one of the must-see openings at the start of the 2012 summer season. Anne-Sophie Pic arrived in Paris with her very first restaurant. While this wasn't a first for new gastronomic projects outside the family home in Valence - the chef was already working in Lausanne (Switzerland), at the Beau-Rivage Palace - the 18.5 out of 20 chef's hat arrived in the capital with a bang, with a culinary concept with an impactful name and a kitchen visible from the street. Since then, La Dame de Pic has become a savoir-faire that has been duplicated in Megève, London, Singapore and Dubai.
3 questions to Anne-Sophie Pic, chef at La Dame de Pic in Paris
When you opened La Dame de Pic in 2012, you chose to present the cuisine from the street. Why did you make this choice?
Anne-Sophie Pic: Given the layout of the premises, we had to choose whether to present the customers or the kitchen at the entrance (laughs). And we preferred the second option. At the time, it was totally new to show the kitchen in such a transparent way. It was a conscious decision. We absolutely wanted to make it very visible. My husband (David Sinapian) came up with the idea, and I thought it was brilliant!
This was your very first restaurant in Paris. Was it a way of making a mark?
A.S.P : We didn't want to be provocative at all. We just thought that the gestures used to prepare the food were very pretty to look at. And let's face it, this layout offers maximum light, and for the team, that's an asset. The layout was also a topic at the opening, with many passers-by crowding in front of the window. They were curious to see how we made our berlingots. We even ended up moving their preparation to make it more manageable (laughs).
Finally, has the open kitchen concept become an essential part of the structure of each of your new projects?
A.S.P: In Hong Kong (the chef's latest flagship project, ed. note), we wanted to go one step further by completely eliminating the presence of the pass-through. As a result, customers have the impression of being able to enter the kitchen. This restaurant (Cristal Room by Anne-Sophie Pic) is crazy, the concept is crazy! It's like being in a big apartment.
