Yannick FRANQUES

Chef : 1 restaurant Executive Chef of La Tour d'Argent in Paris since 2019, Yannick Franques embodies elegance and rigor while enhancing the image of this legendary institution founded in the 16th century.

Presentation

As a child, Yannick Franques dreamed of being a professional footballer! By chance, he enrolled at the EPMT and trained as a chef. It was during his apprenticeship with Christophe Girodot, at La Tonnelle Saintongeaise, in Neuilly-sur-Seine, that his passion for the profession really took off. Yannick Franques cut his teeth with some of the greatest: first at the Pavillon Ledoyen with Ghislaine Arabian, then at the Crillon with Christian Constant, at the Louis XV with Alain Ducasse, before working at La Grande Cascade and the Bristol.

On the strength of this experience with some of the greatest, Yannick was appointed sous-chef at Relais du Parc, before being asked by Eric Frechon to join him at Le Bristol, as first sous-chef. A particularly memorable experience: Eric Frechon encouraged him to enter the Meilleur Ouvrier de France competition. Yannick took to the game and worked relentlessly. His efforts were rewarded, and in 2004 he won the coveted Diplôme d'Excellence.

Yannick then joined La Réserve de Beaulieu and took charge of the kitchen for four years, before being called in by André Terrail, who appointed him Executive Chef at La Tour d'Argent in 2019.

A cuisine halfway between tradition and modernity

Run by the Terrail family for over a century, La Tour d'Argent has earned its letters of nobility both through its emblematic dishes (including the famous Frédéric Delair duck) and its exceptional cellar and view of Notre Dame Cathedral. After more than 15 months of renovation work, which " modernized the house without altering its character ", Yannick Franques has returned to the kitchen to create a "neo-classical" cuisine, halfway between tradition and modernity. The kitchen is now open to the dining room, and " some of our emblematic recipes have been reinterpreted", such as foie gras des trois empereurs or quenelles de brochet, revisited in a lighter, fluffier version. The chef has added more personal recipes to the menu, such as "the mystery of the egg" or " roasted langoustines with futaba seeds and yuzu emulsion ".

While remaining faithful to the authenticity of the place, Yannick Franques brings a subtle modernity to La Tour d'Argent, without revolutionizing everything!