Christophe COMES

Chef : 1 restaurant

Presentation

As a teenager with little interest in studies, Christophe Comes wanted to get his hands dirty as soon as possible. So he turned to cooking. "At school, I wasn't the best, but I wasn't the worst either; I hesitated between catering and gardening."Aware of the difficulty of the profession, his father suggested that he go and see what was going on in the kitchens of a restaurant, those of a traditional inn in his canton, near Perpignan. "I was on fire!"

In 1989, Henri Ronde, owner of La Petite Auberge in Vinça (Pyrénées-Orientales), taught him the basics. "I learned quickly and eagerly. This time, I was top of my class, so I had the opportunity to join Georges Landriot's brigade at Le Goumard in Paris." In 1991, at just 18 years of age, the young apprentice signed a promise of employment even before completing his studies.

After two years of loyal service as a clerk, Christophe Comes left to do his military service. On his return, he rejoins Georges Landriot at his brand-new Prunier restaurant. After four years, he returns to the region he misses so much. As chef de partie, he joined Michel Del Burgo's brigade at the Hôtel de la Cité in Carcassonne. "In 1996, he advised me to follow him to the Bristol. I wasn't a fan of life in Paris but, to convince me, he offered me a position as sous-chef, so I couldn't resist." The adventure lasted four years.

But Christophe Comes was in need of a change of scene and, after ten years in prestigious establishments, he felt the urge to strike out on his own. Back to his roots in 2000, at the age of 27, he opened La Galinette. "I started modestly with one employee. In 2001, like a fish in water in the region, he began growing his own vegetables: "I started with a small vegetable garden. One thing led to another and it grew. Today,it's over 6 hectares in size", enabling him to be 100% self-sufficient from mid-May to mid-October. Gault&Millau quickly crowned him with 3 toques, and awarded him the Cuisine de la Mer Occitanie trophy in 2014.

B. G.