Luxury Travel Advisor - September 2008 - (Page 84)

PROFILE Alain Ducasse A lain Ducasse was the first chef in the history of the Michelin Guide to be awarded three stars at three restaurants, simultaneously. With a career spanning more than 30 years, Ducasse continues to define and redefine contemporary gastronomy with haute cuisine based on simplicity, quality and fresh ingredients. Here, the master chef shares his insights with Luxury Travel Advisor on topics ranging from nouveau gastronomy to the elevation of hotel restaurants. Note: Ducasse is also a hotelier. For insight on three of his hotels in the French countryside, see page 10. You are one of the world’s most decorated chefs. How has French gastronomy evolved since the beginning of your career? And, how have your clients evolved? The trend is not only in French food, but in the entire gastronomy community. Moving into the 21st century, the world has become increasingly global and diverse. Communications travel at the speed of light. There is a constant exchange of knowledge between chefs from Paris to Tokyo, São Paolo to New York. Chefs all over the world from every discipline are traveling and discovering new places, new tastes and ingredients and new talents. As a result, our passion for good food and good living reaches a very broad audience, which is good news since the more enthusiastic our guests are, the more enthusiastic we are to provide them with a memorable experience. What’s the difference between the American palate and the French palate? Both Americans and the French have very unique palates and, more and more, they are continuing to develop a great appreciation for food. Their tastes are always evolving and are looking to chefs and restaurants to offer something fresh, new and unique. With my restaurants, we look to offer each of our guests an experience that is different and rooted in its time and place. Throughout the world, the upscale clientele tends to have a similar knowledge of, and consistent expectations for, good living and good eating. With restaurants like Spoon by Alain Ducasse at the InterContinental Hong Kong and the new Adour at the St. Regis New York, you continue to push the envelope in creating innovative dining experiences. What’s next? Next is Adour at The St. Regis Washington, D.C., opening this month. It will offer contemporary French American cuisine created with wine pairings in mind. The restaurant will have its own identity, suited to the international and business clientele of Washington, D.C., while still sourcing the best in local ingredients, technique and attentive service. In October, we will welcome another addition to the Benoit family of bistros, but with a twist. Le Comptoir de Benoit in Osaka, Japan, is a Japanese adaptation of the traditional French bistro, incorporating local ingredients, while still illustrating the story of a timeless bistro. The marriage of tradition and modernity will be reflected in the restaurant’s design, too, uniting traditional and contemporary Japanese architecture around the bar that overlooks the open kitchen. Speaking of which, why are so many of your restaurants based in hotels? What is the link between gastronomy and hospitality? Chef and Luxury Hotelier Twenty years ago, high-end restaurants were stand-alone, individual businesses owned and run by individual chefs. At that time, the restaurants of luxury hotels were seeking to take the dining experience to another level with the goal to match the quality of the food offered to the hospitality services. When Le Louis XV obtained three Michelin Stars in 1990, it was the first hotel restaurant to gain this rating. This opened the door to new opportunities; it showed the potential and need for such partnerships between hotels and international chefs. Since then, the hotel industry has become more and more global and consolidated. A great need for improving the quality of the restaurants of these new hotel groups has emerged. This is the challenge we are helping the hotel groups to answer to. Most people know Alain Ducasse as the internationally acclaimed celebrity chef. But your global empire extends beyond restaurants. The Groupe Alain Ducasse is comprised of hotels and a cooking school as well. How did you become a hotelier? The entire process came quite naturally, over time. Our intent has always been to offer guests a memorable experience. My hotels and inns aim for similar standards. After acquiring La Bastide de Moustiers in Provence (see profile p. 10), my passion for pairing hospitality and cuisine developed and blossomed. Over time, my desire to offer our clientele a variety of experiences based on what travelers are seeking, whether for a romantic weekend, a quick stop-over stay or family. Each one of our properties holds something special, unique and so it is not a matter of simply acquiring hotels and inns across Europe, but has more to do with being charmed by a place’s story. 84 LUXURY TRAVEL ADVISOR | September 2008

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Luxury Travel Advisor - September 2008 Contents Publisher's Letter Editor's Letter Provence India Alvear Palace Hotel Oceana Santa Monica English Country Houses Chewton Glen Summer Lodge Chilston Park Hotel Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago Park Hyatt Milan Intercontinental Montelucia Jackson Hole World Cruises French Riveria Spas Voluntourism Vacations Signature Travel Network The Pulse Profile Luxury Travel Expo Sightings Source List Leaders Speak

Luxury Travel Advisor - September 2008

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