Gabin BORDELAIS
Chef de partie : Le Pré Catelan Chef : Don Juan II Working in the kitchen with Chef Frédéric Anton aboard the Don Juan II (4 toques) since 2021, Gabin Bordelais is a model of loyalty. Working alongside the five-toque chef since the start of his career, the young Parisian has risen through the ranks.
Presentation
This is the story of a professional passion. After earning a vocational high school diploma and then a BTS in hospitality and culinary arts, Gabin Bordelais, a young Parisian chef, became a commis chef in the kitchens of Le Pré Catelan (5 toques). At age 22, his encounter with Frédéric Anton would shape the rest of his career.
The High Standards of Top Restaurants
He began working with the chef in 2017, after completing internships across the country. First at the Saint James Paris, near the Porte Dauphine, then at Faventia (2 toques), the restaurant at the Terre Blanche estate in the Var region. He then spent six months in Guadeloupe, in the kitchens of the Hôtel de La Vieille Tour.
Gabin Bordelais is drawn to top-tier establishments. He feels the need for structure and for people to hold him to high standards. So what could be better than applying to the top Parisian restaurants? Back in the capital, he interviewed with Kévin Garcia to join Le Pré Catelan. He was hired. “The place, the setting—it makes you want to do things right, and it was a dream come true for me! I felt right at home from the start,” he says. “ Then I gradually worked my way up.” In 2021, he spent about a month in the kitchen at Jules Verne (3 toques).
A sign of trust
Then Frédéric Anton, our Chef of the Year, offered him the chance to take the reins of a new restaurant, the Don Juan II (4 toques). “ I couldn’t turn down an offer like that—it’s not every day you get a proposal like this! ” says Gabin Bordelais, then 26 years old. In October 2021, he became chef at Don Juan II, a floating restaurant on the Seine.
The partnership works wonderfully. “I really love Frédéric Anton’s cooking. It’s simple and gets right to the heart of the matter. And on a personal level, we get along very well,” comments the young chef.
Gabin Bordelais takes pleasure in cooking seafood. On the menu at his Don Juan II, guests can indulge in curry-scented crab or langoustine ravioli—all while taking in the wonders of the capital from this luxurious yacht.
