Takuya WATANABE
Chef : 2 restaurants Blending Japanese tradition with French ingredients, Chef Takuya Watanabe has forged a strong connection through the spirit of kaiseki-sushi cuisine, which he features on the menu at Hakuba (4 toques), the Japanese restaurant at Cheval Blanc Paris.
Presentation
He is the head chef at the Japanese restaurant at Cheval Blanc Paris. Born in 1976 in Hokkaido, Japan, Takuya Watanabe followed an unconventional path to the kitchens ofHakuba (4 toques), working alongsideArnaud Donckele and Maxime Frédéric.
As a child, he grew up on his grandparents’ farm, surrounded by freshly harvested vegetables from the family garden and under the guidance of his mother, a dietitian. He quickly understood the importance of using fresh, high-quality ingredients. Takuya Watanabe thus naturally turned to fine dining and specialized in the fundamentals of Japanese culinary techniques—working with fish, rice, and broths…
Experimenting to Grow
In pursuit of innovation, he experiments with new flavors. “I learned very early on to seek my own answers, to experiment, and to gradually develop my own culinary style.” Takuya Watanabe became a chef at age 23 before embarking on his own adventure by opening his own restaurant. In 2012, he arrived in France to work at Jin (2 toques), a Japanese fine-dining restaurant in Paris. There, he developed his approach to sushi and applied Japanese fish-preparation techniques to French ingredients.
Between 2022 and 2023, he spent a year in London at TAKU in Mayfair. Upon his return to France, he joined Cheval Blanc Paris and became executive chef at Hakuba upon its opening in March 2024.
French Terroir Through the Eyes of a Japanese Chef
In the kitchens on the Quai du Louvre, he admires Arnaud Donckele—with whom he works in perfect harmony—for “his ability to express the region, the producers, memories, and emotion on a plate.” In Maxime Frédéric’s reimagined desserts, he admires “the delicacy with which the ingredients are handled and the constant attention to detail.” He describes his culinary repertoire as focused on the essentials and respectful of the ingredients. “My work consists of understanding French ingredients and revealing their identity through Japanese culinary techniques and my sensibility as a Japanese chef,” he explains. “ I seek to express the French terroir through the eyes and sensibility of a Japanese chef.”
