Mickaël MARION

Chef : Intuition Mickaël Marion is a true native of Manche, and he’s proud to champion his department and its Normandy producers. Born in Saint-Lô exactly 50 years ago, the chef dreamed of becoming a pastry chef, a cook, or… a hairdresser.

Presentation

“It was a restaurant internship when I was 16 that sealed the deal for me. It was a positive experience with a welcoming team. My mind was made up. ” This grandson of farmers based in the Bessin region was practically raised on the farm: “I spent my weekends and school vacations on the farm with my grandparents. They raised Bayeux pigs and suckling calves, among other things… Wonderful memories for me.” The young Mickaël left Lower Normandy for Upper Normandy to learn the trade of cooking. He joined La Chaîne d’Or in Les Andelys, then one of the region’s finest gourmet restaurants. There, he met the woman who would become his wife, who was working as a receptionist at the hotel. “ She was quickly promoted to manager due to staffing issues. It was a crash course for her.”

Around the turn of the 2000s, the young couple moved to Brittany. Estelle worked at Tirel-Guérin in Saint-Méloir-des-Ondes, while Mickaël was hired by chef Olivier Roellinger— " an experience that was obviously pivotal in my career." They then returned to Calvados, where Mickaël took on the role of sous chef at the Lion d’Or, an iconic restaurant in Bayeux. “ I was sous chef there for three years before Estelle and I decided to open our own restaurant in Coutances. We only stayed there for six years because the kitchen facilities weren’t suited to the kind of dining experience we wanted to offer.”

Two Restaurants in One Location

In Saint-Lô, Mickaël and Estelle Marion were able to open a brasserie (Les Capucines) and a fine-dining restaurant, Intuition, which is open only on weekends. It’s a well-thought-out setup that works well for the staff and allows us to offer two complementary dining experiences to our guests. “We’re also very mindful of the restaurant’s environmental impact; we recycle as much as possible. And we’re nearly self-sufficient in vegetables for the fine-dining restaurant, thanks to our vegetable garden. I love it—I spend a lot of time there every week. We grow, among other things, ‘Merveille des Marais’ beans, Soissons beans , and an heirloom variety of flageolet beans, which I’ll soon be featuring on my menu.”