Chefs on the Run - Up, Down or Sideways
A recent post on the eGullet Society of Culinary Arts and Letters’ France Forum mentioned the transfer of a classic place – Le Bellecoeur, rebirthed most recently as Les Ormes – from Stephane Molé to Philippe Pentecôte - who promptly renamed it le Petit Bordelais.”
Ok. This is all arcane BS, John. Who cares? Is the food any good?
Well: Number 1, I care.
And #2, my loyal wife, Colette cares. She inevitably wants to know of me and my wrangler-pal
Atar where this guy is from.
Any more questions?
So I did some digging around and uncovered the following:
On February 22nd, my colleague Chocolate & Zucchini posited that “Chef Stéphane Molé had sold Les Ormes, and is planning to open a new one outside of Paris.”
And on March 17th, Orange’s netsite said that {my trans} ”Fauchon would open a restaurant March 19th with Stéphane Molé at the stoves…..”
What’s going on here?
So trained as a scientist, I did a scientific double-blind controlled study of chef movements and subjected it to incredible statistical analyses.
And here are the results:
15.76% of successful chefs move from the far arrondissements to central Paris because they correctly need a bigger theater – vide Eric Frechon, Jean Pierre Vigato, David Van Laer and maybe Jean Chauvel.
13.87% of successful chefs move from one place to a larger one because they need more space – vide Sylvain Sendra ex of le Temps au Temps.
10.64% of successful chefs move from the big shows in Paris because they seek their own enterprise – vide Christian Constant, Dominique Bouchet, Cyril Lalanne, Eric Jolibois and all of Camdeborde’s crew.
9% of successful chefs move from the hinterlands to Paris because they seek new horizons – vide Alain Ducasse.
8% of successful chefs move from the hinterlands to Paris because they are beating the sheriff out of town – vide Pierre Gagnaire.
7% of successful chefs move from the hinterlands to Paris because they need more enterprises to feed the maw – vide Loiseau.
6% of talented chefs move from the hinterlands to Paris because they think they can score anywhere – the Pourcels and the Coutanceaus.
.005% of awful chefs move from the hinterlands to Paris because they think they’re good – vide Helene Darroze.
But that leaves some 20% unaccounted for.
And what about Stephane Molé, who moved Les Ormes, a great place stuck out in the outer 16th (Metro: Exelmans, what?) to the rue Surcouf in the 7th and it seems like two seconds later, sold it and moved to the Café Fauchon; the what? I don’t get this move.
Conclusion: People move for all sorts of reasons, not always wise.
My place of revelation (guess which group) was:
La Folle Avoine
91, rue de Grenelle, 7th, (Metro: Solferino)
T: 01.45.51.02.59
Closed Sundays
Menus: one dish plus 2 drinks for 20; 2 dishes plus one drink for 25; and 3 plus a drink 30 €
©2008 John A. Talbott
