Please wait

Contact

37-39 rue Boissière
75016 Paris
France

Phone : 01 41 40 99 80

GaultMillau © 2025 All rights reserved

Un pâtissier, un artiste: a collab

Un pâtissier, un artiste: a collab

Anne Debbasch | 5/25/23

Gault&Millau begins a series of "sweet" cross-portraits to share the behind-the-scenes story of two creative partners. Far from being a commission, these collaborations are born of a conversation, a dialogue in total freedom. Here's a very sweet exchange between Fabien Rouillard, pastry chef in Paris, and Gérard Audinet, director of Les Maisons de Victor Hugo, in Paris and Guernsey.

Once upon a time, Fabien Rouillard and Victor Hugo. With the help of Gérard Audinet, director of Les Maisons de Victor Hugo, the pastry chef and proud owner of the emblematic Maison Mulot in Paris, immersed himself in the world of this fabulous writer and avant-garde designer and decorator. He was immediately captivated by the creativity, strong convictions and incredible imagination of a man who had taken refuge in Guernsey. His conversations with Gérard Audinet gave rise to the idea of a daring sweet collaboration at Café Mulot, located on the first floor of the writer's Parisian home.

For this latest episode, Gault&Millau continues its gourmet exchanges, bringing together two centuries, two worlds and two artists for an ephemeral cake in tribute to Victor Hugo's daughter Léopoldine.

Gault&Millau: Is this your first collaboration with another world?

Fabien Rouillard: My first dates back to the late 1990s, when I was head pastry chef at Lucas Carton and worked with painter Mark Alsterlind. We got together around the material chocolate and its texture, reminiscent of gouache. This led to the idea of creating chocolate paintings and the "Eat the Paint" concept. This exciting collaboration prepared me for what's to come.

Gérard Audinet: We do it often. It allows us to take a trip into another world. One of the most memorable was last year, when actress Christine Guênon came to declaim thousands of verses from La Fin de Satan. An original experience in which the museum was transformed into a theater stage, for a total immersion in the world of Victor Hugo. The association with Fabien is a first in the world of patisserie.

G&M: How did your meeting come about?

F. R.: I took part in a call for tenders organized by Paris Musées to reinvest the first floor of the Maison de Victor Hugo on Place des Vosges. During an audition with Gérard, my passion and my desire to perpetuate Gérard Mulot's work while adding my own distinctive touch were the starting point for this unique collaboration.

G. A.: My first meeting with Fabien was a professional one, as he was applying to take over the café, a space we had restored not far from the Serpent Fountain. When I saw him for the first time, it took me back years, to when I was working on Rue de Tournon and buying macaroons at Mulot. The way Fabien talked to me about his job and the company, his discretion and sincere passion, the quality of his language and his love for the artistic dimension touched me.

G&M: How did you go about imagining this collaboration?

F. R.: I organized a free conversation between my friend Bénédict Beaugé, a food writer, Gérard Audinet and myself. We got together to share Victor Hugo's work without limits. When I took over this place, I didn't just want to set up a café. I'm very attached to the history of a house, and I always seek to perpetuate it by adding value. Victor Hugo's sketchbooks were initially used to create the café's quadriptych, signed by Alexandre and Florentine Lamarche-Ovize, followed by my ephemeral dessert, a tribute to Léopoldine.

G. A.: We don't have much documentation on Victor Hugo à table, and some of it is contradictory. When we discussed the idea of making a pastry, I thought of Léopoldine, whose memory is very present in the house. Fabien was seduced, and was inspired in particular by the tones of Léopoldine's portrait hanging in the red salon. She wears a red dress with black polka dots and sits on a white tapestry armchair, a flower in her hair. The dessert reflects the harmonious colors of the painting and the delicacy of the writer's daughter.

G&M: What's so special about these collaborations?

F. R.: Working in the Maison de Victor Hugo and bringing the place back to life, while paying tribute to the artist, can only be unique. It required a great deal of research and regular exchanges with Gérard, enabling me to slip into the writer's world.

G. A.: I rediscovered the attention to detail that Fabien told me about when we first met. He pays particular attention to materials. There's no plastic, everything is eco-responsible. Setting up the café in the very heart of the establishment has given this house a new lease of life. The apartment is 280 m2 and we're a small museum. People used to come and go. Today, they sit in the café!

G&M: Collaboration, freedom or constraint?

F. R.: Freedom. It's all about openness and exchange. We always come together around an element that serves as a starting point for the imagination. Here, Victor Hugo's drawings and Léopoldine's portrait were my source of inspiration for the creation of this dessert. I thought of it as a tribute. I wanted it to be elegant and delicate, but also spicy and ephemeral, to echo the young woman's life. So I chose wild strawberries, which are only in season for a short time, and strawberries, vanilla, rose petals and a raw and cooked lemon confit to give the refinement of the red berries some pizzazz.

G. A.: There are necessarily constraints. As a museum, we have image and security imperatives. But we have to try to keep as much freedom as possible for both, and in this project, we worked intelligently. Fabien and I talked a lot about Victor Hugo's life. As a result, he was able to imagine the café and its menu as he wished, while respecting the codes of the place.

G&M: How did you work together?

F. R.: I started with the existing writings and drawings, then let my creativity take over. When we tasted the cake, it was Léopoldine's cake. It all came together very naturally and fluidly.

G. A.: We often exchange ideas and projects, just as we did with the cake. In the spring, we may even relaunch Les Causeries à l'heure du thé, one Thursday a month, where I tell a story about the museum while enjoying a pastry.

G&M: Are there any impossible collaborations?

F. R.: Certainly. When we don't share each other's values, for example. But, in general, we always find ourselves on open ground. In that respect, these collaborations are extremely enriching.

G. A.: If it's a question of maintaining our neutrality as a museum, yes. But we can go very far. For example, we hosted a strolling show. Students from the Cours Florent created a highly offbeat adaptation of Le Roi s'amuse. They were dressed very scantily, to match the play's erotic ardor, and it worked tremendously well!

Café Mulot - Maison de Victor Hugo

6, place des Vosges, 75004 Paris

These news might interest you

Seaweed bliss Craftsmen & Know-How

Seaweed bliss

Jean-Marie and Valérie Pédron gather, preserve and process seaweed from the Guérande peninsula, delivering it to France's top chefs. The couple also aim to democratize the use of this coastal treasure, which is rarely used in cooking.
Jade Genin transforms Easter eggs into works of art Craftsmen & Know-How

Jade Genin transforms Easter eggs into works of art

For Easter, Jade Genin transforms chocolate into an exceptional sculpture. Blooma, her latest creation, is as fascinating to contemplate as it is to taste.
Craftsmen & Know-How

Ebony treasure from The Peninsula Paris For Easter, Anne Coruble has created a trompe-l'oeil that's truer than life, with its curves of black garlic and subtle caramelized taste. Beneath a shell of 40% Madagascar milk chocolate, eight cloves enclose a candied black garlic ganache and hazelnut praline. A precious creation that opens without being broken, so hesitant is it to open. Price: 95 euros Pre-order from March 29 and on sale from April 12. The turtle candy box from Manufacture Ducasse Set a course for the Mediterranean with this turtle-shaped bonbonnière made entirely of chocolate, from base to lid. inside are "turtle nuggets" combining vanilla marshmallow and hazelnut praline, as well as coconut praline bells. Price: 67 euros À la mère de famille hens À la mère de famille carries on the tradition with its chocolate hens, available in several sizes and named after the owners and their families who have marked the history of the house (Hélène, Julia, Adélaïde, Jane and Claude). Two recipes: a dark chocolate with woody, earthy notes, and a milk chocolate with milk and caramel accents. inside, an assortment of butterflied praline eggs, praline fritures and dry fritures. Price: 19 to 122 euros depending on format available from March 17, 2025 The Cheval Blanc Paris Easter bell Maxime Frédéric imagines a bell in motion, in homage to Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. Its dark chocolate base conceals a tablet filled with vanilla caramel and crispy hazelnut praline. The milk chocolate belfries enclose a praline tablet, while the yoke houses chocolate-coated caramelized hazelnuts. The dark chocolate bell is transformed into a mendiant, studded with dried and candied fruit. Price: 135 euros Edwart Chocolatier Three mischievous animals are part of Edwart's Easter collection: Yara, the lively, inquisitive bird, Eloa, the dreamy frog, and Taïno, the mischievous, playful monkey. All made from Grands Crus cocoa, for a playful blend of indulgence and character. Credit: Edwart Spring takes flight at Waldorf Astoria Versailles - Trianon Palace Eddie Benghanem has created a poetic tribute to spring: a little bird perched on a tree trunk with delicate sugar flowers. inside, an alliance of dark chocolate, chocolate almond cake, dark ganache and crunchy praline. Price: 45 euros Capon Head for Chaponie, where jungle animals come to life in chocolate. Léonard the leopard in milk chocolate, Suzy the zebra in white chocolate, Zoé the bonobo in milk chocolate, Bob the bear in dark chocolate. All deliciously garnished with fried food. Price: 19 euros each Cédric Grolet's trompe-l'œil chocolates Almond, hazelnut, peanut and pecan: five dried fruits sublimated in trompe-l'œil. Beneath a crunchy chocolate shell, a praline made from the fruit in question, with a hint of fleur de sel. Available in S and M sizes. Size S: 30 euros Size M: 50 euros from March 26, pre-order on our website Claire Heitzler's Bibis Chef Claire Heitzler has created three chocolate bears, tenderly nicknamed Les Bibis. Milk, dark or white, each contains an assortment of three-chocolate and praline chips. Cyril Lignac Farm animals take center stage in this collection by Cyril Lignac: hens, pigs and sheep in crunchy chocolate, topped with praline eggs and mini chocolate bears. Available in dark, milk or dulcey versions. Available from March 27 Maison Boissier lace cats This year, Maison Boissier pays tribute to felines with a box of two cats in dark and milk chocolate, finely sculpted and filled with sweet treats. Price: 125 euros Cagnes Sheep, bunny and hen take shape in dark or milk chocolate. Under their shells, a heart of chocolate chips and crunchy marbles. starting at 20 euros Arnaud Larher MOF Arnaud Larher unveils a collection of four whimsical creatures, all topped with fritures. Kim the parrot in white chocolate and Ruby, René the elephant in caramel chocolate, Émilie the gorilla in intense dark chocolate, and Élio the lion in white chocolate and caramel. Prices: from 35 to 64 euros from March 20
Exceptional eggs from chefs and artisans for Easter 2025 Craftsmen & Know-How

Exceptional eggs from chefs and artisans for Easter 2025

Chefs and artisans reinvent the Easter egg with creations as surprising as they are refined. Unexpected shapes and daring flavors, discover our selection.
Flan Craftsmen & Know-How

Flan

A baker's dessert par excellence, the flan has returned to center stage in recent years, and social networks have made it a veritable gourmet star. Pastry chefs have seized upon it, bringing their know-how and high technical standards to the table.
Rum baba Craftsmen & Know-How

Rum baba

Gault&Millau continues its sweet conquest with a monument to French patisserie. New episode dedicated this time to baba au rhum!

Food products, kitchen equipment, tableware, service solutions...

See the full list of partners who place their trust in Gault&Millau

All our partners
Become a Partner
LEARN MORE