Michele DONVITO
Chef : La Mirande A lover of the South, Italy, and France, Chef Michele Donvito took the helm at La Mirande (4 toques) in Avignon in early 2026, drawing on his extensive experience in his native country and his years of service under Alexandre Mazzia.
Presentation
A culinary prodigy, this Italian-born chef trained at the Formia Hotel School, located on the shores of the Tyrrhenian Sea, between Rome and Naples. After earning a master’s degree in culinary arts in Trento, in northern Italy, he had one of the most formative experiences of his career at Locanda Margon, working alongside Alfio Ghezzi.
France as a Dream
In Milan, he then helped launch the Mandarin Oriental before working alongside other leading figures in Italian cuisine, such as Mauro Uliassi and Enrico Crippa. Drawn to the international scene, Michele Donvito joined the kitchen at The Fat Duck in the United Kingdom. But his stint was cut short after three months by the COVID-19 pandemic.
He then set his sights on France, fulfilling a long-held dream: “To see how things work over at our cousins’ place, to discover something new,” he jokes. In Italy, he had been deeply influenced by the message of Gualtiero Marchesi, founder of Italian nouvelle cuisine: “He conveyed the idea that you had to go through France to grow!” says the chef, nearly all of whose mentors had studied under this visionary master.
Upon arriving in France in 2021, he cut his teeth working under Jérôme Nutile in Nîmes, then joined Alexandre Mazzia in Marseille at AM (5 toques), where he eventually rose to the position of executive chef. At age 33, he finally succeeded Florent Pietravalle in the kitchen at La Mirande (4 toques) in Avignon.
Plant-Based Cuisine, Provence, and Seafood
Michele Donvito has forged his culinary identity by celebrating Provence through plant-based ingredients and fruits, and the Mediterranean, whose seafood he prepares while taking care to avoid overfished species. In the South of France, he enthusiastically recognizes the similarities with Southern Italy: “I love the South, the Mediterranean Sea, the sun, and Provence!”
The chef takes pleasure in showcasing his adopted region and French culinary expertise. This is evident in his carrot trilogy, which centers on the art of sauce-making: “We know how important sauce is in France; here, I’m using a vegetable-based ingredient to pay homage to Provence.”
