Julien BOUSQUET

Chef : 1 restaurant A loyal follower of his mentor Fabien Lefebvre, Julien Bousquet admits he'd like to follow in his mentor's footsteps and aim for the MOF title himself.

Presentation

As a child growing up in Pézenas, Julien Bousquet loved Sunday family dinners ("my grandmother was an excellent cook") and snooping around the back of the restaurant set up not far from his grandparents' home. "I listened to what was going on, I observed, and I even regularly went into the kitchens, I couldn't help it" .

A decisive move to Octopus in Béziers

Naturally, as a teenager, the young man turned to the restaurant business and apprenticed with Fabien Lefebvre, MOF in 2004, who was in the process of putting Béziers back on the map of France with his Octopus, which he lifted to the fourth toque in 2016 before handing over a few years later (and eventually falling back into the hands of Gilles Goujon).

A stint in Paris before a return to Occitanie

In 2015, the young chef left Occitanie to join Gaël Orieux at Auguste in Paris. "He's an excellent technician, who offers a fine classic cuisine, mainly focused on seafood.I spent two very formative years there before returning to Béziers to join Fabien, who was about to open Pica-Pica. "

The two men know each other by heart, and the former "quatre toques" now has complete confidence in his chef. "With Fabien," says Julien Bousquet,"the roles are clearly defined. He's the boss, I'm the executive chef, I submit ideas to him, he tastes, corrects or adds his personal touch, and he also asks us to work on a particular product or recipe .

The MOF competition in his sights

Having just turned thirty, Julien Bousquet admits he'd like to follow in the footsteps of his mentor, MOF at 33. "Thenext session is in 2026, and I'm really thinking about it. It's one of my short-term goals .

In the meantime, the young man from Béziers has been rewarded for his work at Pica-Pica with a Tradition d'Aujourd'hui trophy .