Nadia SAMMUT

Chef : 3 restaurants Manager : 2 restaurants Free and inclusive gluten-free recipes: that's what Nadia Sammut proposes in her latest book. It's an avant-garde concept that has caught on with her.

Presentation

Nadia Sammut's story begins before she was born, in 1972 to be precise. That year symbolized the creation of La Fenière, in the Luberon, an establishment that has since been handed down from generation to generation. Yet Nadia Sammut never imagined she would one day be part of it. Firstly, as a chemist by training, she left to live in New York: " I wanted to be a perfume nose ". But above all, because the young woman has a difficult relationship with food: suffering from celiac disease, she is intolerant to gluten and lactose. " The table was a source of exclusion, it's diHicult to eat the same thing because people are afraid of poisoning you."

Reconnecting with the body through food

But in 2009, her life took a decisive turn. " My body was totally intoxicated, because it had developed other immune pathologies ". For two years, the young woman took a complete break. Reading, research and travel gradually led her to reinvent her relationship with food and discover alternative dietary solutions. " I realized that people substitute elements when they think they don't have a choice .

She then went on to study social entrepreneurship at ESSEC business school, and developed Cuisine Libre: " Cuisine without diktat and without exclusion ". After testing her concept, Nadia Sammut joined the family business in 2015. Since then, she has been offering a gluten-free menu featuring products that respect the environment and animals. She has also launched Nourrir, a brand of gluten-free and lactose-free products, as well as a cooking academy. More recently, the young Cheqe published her book Construire un monde au goût meilleur (ed. Actes Sud) with Paule Masson.

Biography & Awards

1972 La Fenière was born to Claudette Sammut, Nadia's grandmother, in the village of Lourmarin

1975 Claudette is joined in the kitchen by Guy Sammut's wife, Reine Sammut

1980 birth of Nadia Sammut in Puyricard

1997 move the restaurant to Cadenet and open the Auberge la Fenière

2014 imagines the concept of Cuisine Libre

2015 joined the family business and took over the economic and entrepreneurial aspects, while gradually introducing gluten-free cuisine

2016 Start-up kitchen and total management of the establishment