Laurent HALLER
Chef : 1 restaurant For 30 years, Laurent Haller, chef at Le 7e Continent (3 toques) in Rixheim, has pursued a free, balanced cuisine rooted in Alsace's terroir, but open to the world.
Trained at the Audincourt hotel school, Laurent Haller began his career as a pastry chef with Stéphane Klein in Belfort. He soon moved to Corsica, before returning to his native region. It was here that he met Bernard Leray, an encounter that would prove decisive for his career, as Leray advised him to pursue his career with Bernard Loiseau (4 toques) in Saulieu .
It was in 1991, in this restaurant and with this chef, that he discovered a philosophy that would mark him for life: "The purity of the product, the juices, the broths... Taste came first," he recalls. This seminal period forged his rigor and exacting standards.
In 1994, he continued his apprenticeship with Père Rota in Fougerolles: "I discovered a more classical style of cooking, on a coal-fired piano. A training course in Switzerland, with his wife, completed his training.
The Little Prince adventure: a creator takes flight
In 2000, Laurent Haller opened Le Petit Prince on the Rixheim airfield. For him, "that's when the adventure really began. I was a bit of a cooking bulimic, and I've kept this vision of work," he explains.
In a simple prefabricated kitchen, he multiplied his experiments and explorations of taste: "Every month, I changed the menu without ever making the same dish again, always with a theme."Tea, coffee, hay, strawberry... In all, 120 themes, 120 different menus, and limitless creativity.
Le 7e Continent: a world of flavours
In 2008, he bought a restaurant in Rixheim and opened Le 7e Continent (3 toques) the following year, after extensive renovations. "I wanted a name that would make people travel: a new continent of flavors, between French technique and foreign inspirations. "
Today, Laurent Haller's cuisine has become calmer and more refined: "I work a lot with local produce, as much as possible. I've adapted to the zeitgeist." In his unique menu, introduced in 2018, he offers a journey around the product."I can make a dashi, but with local, seasonal herbs. We harvest, we infuse, we create our own fruit juices and compotes. "
Laurent Haller works with his wife in the dining room, and his son, who has been sommelier for two years. A story of transmission, just like his career. In 2025, the Gault&Millau Tour Grand Est awarded him the Trophée Terroir d'Exception, in recognition of his demanding and sincere cuisine.
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