Jean-François TÊTEDOIE

Chef : 1 restaurant

Presentation

With such a family name and such a pedigree, it was difficult for Jean-François Têtedoie to work in any other sector than the restaurant business. I grew up in my parents' restaurant and learned a lot there, both in the kitchen and in the dining room," he says. As a child, however, my sole aim wasn't necessarily to follow in my family's footsteps. It was only as I got older that it became obvious."

After graduating from high school, Jean-François Têtedoie entered a business school in Lyon, but after just a few weeks he realized that his future lay elsewhere. "During the few months of the school year that remained, I worked as an extra for my parents and restaurant friends before going to work at the Ritz Carlton in New York. My level of English was poor and, although Spanish was the main language spoken in the kitchen there, it was beneficial."

On his return, he enrolled at the Paul-Bocuse school, despite the strong ties between his family and Monsieur Paul. He spent a few months at Le Martinez in Cannes, then at Bocuse in Shanghai (where he even held the position of restaurant manager), before returning to France in early 2015.

It was then that he decided to take flight with a childhood friend, Lemmy Brou. Café Terroir finally opened its doors in July 2015 on rue d'Amboise, Lyon. "For the first few years, I was mainly in the dining room, but in 2019, I had to replace the chef in the kitchen. I'm still there today," he laughs.

Success came quickly, prompting the two young men to soon open Cave Café Terroir, a dozen meters down the road, followed by Kiosque Café Terroir, a delicatessen set up on Place des Jacobins. "Our new project? In April 2024, we're opening a simplified version of our Café Terroir in Anse, within the Domaine Saint-Cyr, a vineyard in the heart of the Pierres Dorées region." The Têtedoie lineage looks set to continue for many years to come. Gault&Millau awards it the Terroir d'Exception Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes 2024 trophy.

F. T.