Maxime BINJAMIN

Pastry Chef : 1 restaurant

Presentation

"Even though my father was a chef and my uncle a pastry chef, I always wanted to do something else!"says Maxime Binjamin. After obtaining a CAP and an additional qualification in pastry and restaurant desserts, he did his first year of apprenticeship with Rémi Sendin at Le Laurent in Paris, where he acquired a solid grounding. "It was my first experience in the luxury sector, and I loved it. I then came back to work as a commis and demi-chef de partie."

He was part of the team that opened the Lutétia, then joined chef Baptiste Renouard at the 2-toque Ochre restaurant in Rueil-Malmaison. In 2020, Maxime Binjamin took up his first position as head pastry chef at Domaine du Colombier, Malataverne, where he began working alongside 3-toque chef Jean-Michel Bardet. Then it was Johan Thyriot (who had worked at La Chèvre d'Or, in Èze, with Philippe Labbé, and at Michel Bras, in Laguiole) who took over the stoves."What I like here is that we mainly use local produce, and also the unbridled, no-holds-barred side of the chef's cooking."

Noted for his unusual desserts and vegetable creations - sweet potato tamarind hibiscus, or citrus wakame matcha - Maxime Binjamin has found his place in the team. After three years at the Domaine du Colombier, the 28-year-old has won his very first Pâtissier Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes trophy.

F.H.