We join our new Chef Nicolas Thibaut at the end of his shift. It is in the intimate setting of the restaurant Les Belles Lettres that he lends himself to the game of questions and answers.
1. How did you get the desire to become a chef? What is your background?
I am originally from Dijon in Burgundy, which is a region known for its gastronomy rich in the great diversity of its local products. At home, we used to cook seasonal products such as fruits, mushrooms, meats and vegetables.
When I was younger, I aspired to travel... So I thought of the hotel business, which is the sector par excellence that could allow me to go abroad and also to learn foreign languages and discover new cultures.
So I did a one-year apprenticeship in the kitchen. After my training, I left the metropolis to finally travel! I left for a few years to work in Guadeloupe and abroad like in Switzerland and England.
I met on my way talented people who taught me this job and made me love it. On my return to France, I also travelled to several French cities such as Le Touquet, Lyon, Dijon and Paris.
2. How would you define your kitchen?
The essence of my cooking is based on the diversity of the products I work with and the demanding choice of fresh seasonal products.
I like to work with seasonal products in order to reinvent myself all the time. Every month, there is an interesting product to work with. I don't focus on one particular style of cooking. It's all about spontaneity!
5. What products do you like to work with?
To be honest, I like all the products! I do have a small preference for vegetables, due to the large variety that exists.
6. What qualities must be developed to become a good cook?
To become a good cook, I think that having the ability to listen is essential because it is important to learn to listen to your Chef.
Rigor is also very important because a brigade has well-defined timings to keep.
To be a good chef, you need to have both this rigor but also a sense of pedagogy in order to help, support and transmit to the people we work with.
7. The hotel's clientele is very business-oriented... Were you used to working for this type of clientele?
Yes, of course I know this type of clientele very well because I used to work in a 5* hotel, mainly business, in the heart of the capital.
My team and I were used to preparing large events for very demanding clients and I find that at the Best Western Plus Paris Val de Bièvre with the executive clientele that we welcome.
8. The expectations of business and leisure customers are different. Do you adapt your cuisine to this clientele?
If so, how?
Yes and no because the result must be the same: to satisfy the taste buds! I always focus on the taste and the visual and then I adapt my cooking to the customers' requests.
I treat banquets and seminars as individuals by meeting their requirements.
9. Describe your typical day in the kitchen?
I start at the Best Western Plus Paris Saclay in the morning between 7:30 and 8:00. The first thing I do when I arrive is to make sure that the kitchen is operational and functional. That is, I check the important points of hygiene and safety.
We then look at the day's activity chart with the team and according to it we divide the tasks and each thing fits like a game of Tetris...
Of course every day has its own surprises!
10. Is there anything you are particularly proud of in French cuisine?
French cuisine is known for its richness with its variety of regional dishes whether in Metropolitan France or in the French overseas departments and territories. Thanks to my experience in different French regions, I have been able to acquire this diversity and enrich my cooking.
11. What should you have tasted at least once in your life? What is your favorite food?
You have to taste the coconut sorbet from Guadeloupe!
Otherwise I have not one but two favorite dishes. I love the fricassee of Lambi on the Creole side and because of my Burgundian origins, I would say the beef confi au vin rouge...
13. Do you have a dish that you like to cook the most?
It's hard because I like to cook so many dishes that I don't really have a favorite!
