8 chef's tables to discover at the museum

Rédaction | 10/17/24, 10:57 AM

Museums, witnesses to our culture, are open to all. When they join forces with chefs who are emblematic of our gastronomy, they offer a unique experience to discover.

"For a long time, museum catering was forgotten and amounted to canteen food," concedes David Gallienne, chef at the Jardin des Plumes in Giverny.of David Gallienne, chef at the Jardin des Plumes in Giverny, who designed the new table at the Musée des Impressionnismes, due to open next spring. The idea is not new. In 2017, Alain Ducasse was already structuring a department within his group dedicated to catering for cultural venues such as the Musée d'Orsay, even daring to serve a concept christened Musiam, a contraction of musée and miam. The health crisis has rekindled the subject, following the closure of various catering outlets in France. "It'sobvious to offer quality catering in a museum, since you can't dissociate cuisine from culture," says Thibaut Spiwack, chef at Anona restaurant, which is opening a table on the roof of the Philharmonie de Paris this Monday. Here's a look at the chefs who have transformed, and will continue to transform, cultural venues into culinary destinations across France.

Thibaut Spiwack - Philharmonie de Paris

Goodbye Caesar salad and tomato-mozzarella, hello roasted celery with caper and hazelnut sauce, snail ham or prime rib basted in double jus. Perched on the roof, l'Envol, the Philharmonie de Paris' new dining room, aims to bring together all publics around an accessible, plant-based and homemade offer. Thibaut Spiwack was given carte blanche both to imagine the plates and to design the 150-cover dining room, with a further 50 seats in a lounge area. "We exchanged ideas with Jean Nouvel, who designed the restaurant room, to make the most of it," explains the Anona chef. "We'll be open on a regular basis, from Wednesday to Saturday, so that the Philharmonie also becomes a place for good eating," stresses the former Top Chef contestant, whose ambition is that people will no longer come here just to attend a concert or visit an exhibition.

This is not a totally new challenge for Thibaut Spiwack. He previously designed the menu for an ephemeral restaurant in the gardens of the Musée Carnavalet. "This type of venue doesn't lend itself to show cooking, and that's what I like about it.You can express yourself simply and cook as you would for yourself or your family, with of course an added touch of graphic design," he explains. He adds, "At the Carnavalet Museum, we couldn't cook on site. So we had to create a menu that took into account the use of a production laboratory, temperature control using a bain-marie, and the considerable distance between the kitchen and the tables. It's more exciting when there are so many challenges!You become more creative when you have limits".

lephotographedudimanche, ©W-Beaucardet

Charles Coulombeau at the Centre Pompidou-Metz

"When Iwas younger, when people asked me what I wanted to do, I would mischievously reply auctioneer.I still enjoy being in contact with artists and art patrons," recalls Charles Coulombeau. Although he has learned to handle pots and pans rather than hammers, the young chef from Maison dans le Parc in Nancy will be adding a new dimension to his cooking as part of a close collaboration with the Centre Pompidou-Metz. An obvious choice for a cultural venue that owes its building to Japanese architect Shigeru Ban. Indeed, history resonates with the chef's signature style, always enhanced by a nod to Japanese terroir.

Half an hour's drive from his renowned gourmet restaurant, this former student of Michel Guérard will open two restaurants in a single location in June. "I'll be welcoming visitors at lunchtime in a French brasserie run in the spirit of an izakaya (Japanese tavern, ed. note).The eggs mayonnaise will be enhanced with miso and the veal blanquette with wasabi", he reveals. In the evening, under the glass bubble, a hushed ambience will invite diners to enjoy a dinner in suspended time, fueled by a gastronomic menu based on local produce.

Eric Guérin at the Café du Musée d'Arts de Nantes

His plates are like paintings. Eric Guérin is a chef who draws before he cooks. His creative process has its origins in his family history, when he lived to the rhythm of vernissages and his parents' art collections. So it's almost natural for the chef from La Mare aux oiseaux to sketch out the culinary formula for the Musée d'arts de Nantes. After six years of renovation, the cultural venue reopened its doors in 2017. Here, Eric Guérin keeps things simple and tasty, like a Caesar salad revisited with Nantes lamb's lettuce at lunchtime. Eric Guérin's palette extends throughout the day, right up to Sunday brunch.

©C.Clos

David Gallienne at the Musée des Impressionnismes - Giverny

Who better than David Gallienne, builder of Giverny's gastronomic reputation, to come up with the concept for the new restaurant at the Musée des Impressionnismes? "We've invested heavily in recent years locally. Whatwas missing was a centerpiece to complete the culinary experience with a complete living space," says the Top Chef winner.Named Oscar, in reference to Claude Monet's first name, the restaurant, due to open next spring, promises to evolve throughout the day, from breakfast to dinner, not forgetting a well-crafted cocktail service in a piano-bar atmosphere on Friday evenings.

For lunch and dinner, David Gallienne will be serving up classics with a twist, using aromatic herbs. On the menu: bouchée à la reine, stuffed tomatoes, sausage-lentils and poule-au-pot. With an average bill of fare of around 30 euros, the menu is designed to be affordable. "We wanted to create gastronomy for everyone. We realize that not everyone can push open the doors of Jardin des Plumes. And I was frustrated not to be able to meet the local clientele," confides the chef from Sarthe, who has planned a number of nods to Normandy's terroir.il to the Normandy region, from the crêpes Suzette basted with Grand Manier, produced 10 km from Giverny, to the use of Mauviel brand saucepans.

Yvan Moreau

Franck Putelat at the Musée de la Romanité - Nîmes

In Nîmes, when the Roman city plans to celebrate its heritage and ancient roots in a new dedicated museum, no less than three chefs are out to win the right to deploy their pans in an adjoining restaurant. In the end, Carcassonne chef Franck Putelat won the day. In June 2018, the chef from Le Parc restaurant embarked on the adventure of a brasserie called La Table du 2, where you can eat great classics revisited with a privileged view of the Nîmes arenas.

For locals and visitors alike, this is a real bargain if they haven't already decided to take a trip to Carcassonne: not only can you sample some of the chef's signature dishes, but the Meilleur Ouvrier de France also comes to cook in person for festive events, such as the annual prestige truffle menu, which takes place at the beginning of February and kicks off the imminent season.