Philippe HARDY

Chef : 1 restaurant

Presentation

Philippe Hardy's love of cooking began in his uncle's restaurant. "From the age of 4, I'd sit on the hot plate next to the cat and watch the plates go by," he recalls. In 1998, he was hired at Panorama, Michel and Maryse Allarousse's restaurant in Dardilly (Rhône). "They gave me my foot in the door," confides the chef. From there, he moved on to Le Grand Hôtel in Cabourg, followed by the Pullman Windsor in Paris. In 1990, he joined the George V as a clerk:"It was a dream to work there."

Then came the time for travel: Switzerland, at the Carlton Lausanne and Lausanne Palace, and Luxembourg, at Eden au Lac. In 1993, he became head chef to the French ambassador in Sofia, Bulgaria. It was here that he met his future wife, Nadia, a prima ballerina.

In 1995, a new adventure began. "My parents called to tell me there was a crêperie for sale in Normandy. I bought it over the phone, without even seeing it," says the chef. After a difficult start, his restaurant, Le Mascaret, went on to become a runaway success. Today, it is listed among the 1,000 best restaurants in the world. In 2007, the establishment moved a few kilometers away, to Blainville-sur-Mer, in an old school building. Accompanied by his second-in-command, Florian Lelièvre, Philippe Hardy was awarded the Terroir d'Exception trophy for the Gault&Millau Tour Normandie 2023 in October 2022.

I.B.

Biography & Awards

1967 naissance à Sainteny (Manche)

1988 commis, puis second, au Panorama, le restaurant de Michel et Maryse Allarousse, à Dardilly (Rhône)

1990 commis au Georges V, à Paris

1993 chef cuisinier de l’ambassadeur de France à Sofia (Bulgarie)

1995 ouverture du Mascaret, à Heugueville-sur-Sienne (Manche)

2007 déménagement du Mascaret à Blainville-sur-Mer (Manche)

2018 Trophée Innovation

2021 figure dans La Liste des 1 000 meilleurs restaurants au monde

2023 Trophée Terroir d'Exception