Jean IMBERT

Chef : 3 restaurants At the helm of the Plaza Athénée restaurants, Jean Imbert has injected new energy into this legendary Parisian landmark. Here's what led him down this unexpected path.

Presentation

Jean Imbert grew up far from fast-food standards, nourished by the traditional recipes of his grandmother in Brittany. It was during an internship at Jean-Pierre Crouzil's restaurant in Plancoët that he discovered his vocation. With his baccalaureate in hand, he entered the Institut Paul Bocuse, where he worked with such great names as Michel Rostang in Paris and Antoine Westermann in Strasbourg. He went on to work for Éric Briqard, then Marc Meneau

His debut as a chef

In 2004, aged just 22, he opened L'Acajou in Paris. It was a great success, especially after being praised by the columnist Jean-Luc Petitrenaud on Europe 1. But it was his victory on Top Chef in 2012 that catapulted him into the limelight. He then went on to appear on various shows: Norbert et Jean: Le Défi; Pékin Express; Top Chef: le choc des champions...

In 2019, he is transforming L'Acajou into a more convivial address called Mamie. The aim: to offer the best recipes created with his grandmother, Nicole Lambert. The restaurant closed two years later, following her death. The result is a book paying tribute to her: Merci mamie pour les recettes, published by Chêne.

Travel and Plaza Athénée

In 2018, Jean Imbert took his first steps in the United States thanks to his collaboration with singer Pharrell Williams. He signed the menu of the Swan and Bar Bevy restaurant in Miami, Encore in New York, then ToShare in Saint-Tropez. The following year, he helped reopen the Cheval Blanc hotel in Saint-Barthélemy, taking charge of the kitchens at the La Case restaurant.

Jean Imbert's arrival at the Plaza Athénée in 2021 marked the start of a new adventure, succeeding Alain Ducasse, who had been in place for 21 years. Despite a criticized arrival, the forty-something Chef rejuvenated the place and took his place at the Relais Plaza, then at the Jean Imbert restaurant at the Plaza Athén&eacute;e.

Since then, the chef has been responsible for the menu of the Monsieur Dior restaurant on avenue Montaigne, the Venice-Simplon-Orient-Express luxury train, and The Brando, actor Marlon Brandon's hotel in French Polynesia. In 2023, Jean Imbert has also taken charge of all the restaurants at the Hotel Martinez in Cannes.

Biography & Awards

1981 born in L'Haÿ-les-Roses (Val-de-Marne, France)

2004 Opening of his first restaurant, L'Acajou, in the 16th arrondissement of Paris

2012 wins season 3 of Top Chef broadcast on M6

2018 becomes chef at Encore restaurant in New York's Meatpacking District

2018 Chef at B.B by Jean Imbert, Paris

2018 chef of the new restaurant Swan and Bar Bevy by his singer friend Pharrell Williams and David Grutman

2019 la Case restaurant at the Cheval Blanc hotel in Saint-Barthélemy

2019 transforms his gourmet restaurant L'Acajou into a more convivial address called Mamie

2021 Chef at the Plaza Athénée, Paris

2022 signs the menu served on board the Venice-Simplon-Orient-Express

2022 takes charge of the Monsieur Dior restaurant in the Dior boutique on avenue Montaigne