Fabien BEAUFOUR

Chef : 1 restaurant

Presentation

"I did my eighth grade internship in a restaurant. We were creating, tasting... I realized that if my professional life were to resemble that experience, it would be perfect!" Convinced, Fabien Beaufour entered the Grenoble hotel school. With his diplomas in hand, he earned his first paycheck at the Auberge de Fond Rose, near Lyon, run by MOF Gérard Vignat. He then joined Anne-Sophie Pic's brigade in Valence, followed by Patrick Henriroux's at La Pyramide in Vienne. "Two very different experiences, but very formative. Anne-Sophie Pic could be as maternal as she was strict. Impatient to climb the ladder, but lacking that opportunity in France, the young man turned to the United States.

In 2006, Fabien Beaufour gave a try in Thomas Keller's kitchens at the French Laundry in California. "To my great surprise, I discovered a calm, organized world, respectful of people and products. "After a few setbacks with the authorities to obtain his visa, Christophe Bellanca, whom he had met at Anne-Sophie Pic's, offered him the chance to join his brigade at L'Orangerie in Los Angeles. He followed him to New York, where he worked at Cirque, Sirio Maccioni's restaurant. "For the record, I smoked a cigarette with Catherine Zeta-Jones at L'Orangerie. She was on the set of 'The Taste of Life', in which she plays a chef. She asked me for some advice. In 2007, Daniel Humm, whom I had met at Le Cirque, promoted him to second-in-command.

In 2011, Fabien Beaufour returned to France with a certain bitterness. "I discovered quality gastronomy there, far from the clichés, but it was too complicated to get visas. I ended up settling in Switzerland," he says, taking charge of the kitchen at Le Trianon, in the Mirador Kempinski hotel. After six months in operation, Gault&Millau awarded him a 16/20 (3 toques) rating.

On the strength of all his international experience, Fabien Beaufour began to think about setting up his own business, "but when I got to the finance page of my project, I realized that I wasn't very competent in this field". To train himself, he took part in the opening of Oblix in 2013, a new restaurant concept imagined by chef Rainer Becker and located on the 32nd floor of the Shard, London. In 2015, he met the shareholders of Domaine des Étangs (Charente), who asked him to also manage the opening of their restaurant, Dyades. After two major openings rewarded by numerous guides, Fabien Beaufour felt ready for the big leap. With his partner Émilie, he founds Le Cent33, in Bordeaux, thanks in particular to the Dotation Jeunes Talents Gault&Millau obtained in 2018. The Guide Jaune immediately awarded him 2 toques and noted in 2023 that "the 3rd toque is just around the corner".

B. G.