With Jean-Michel Lorain
Jean-Michel Lorain is the chef of La Côte Saint-Jacques, a prestigious family hotel-restaurant, which won three stars again this year in the famous Michelin guide.
Part of a chef’s secret mystery is in the ingredients he chooses. What are your favorite ones?
I love mushrooms for their subtle flavours, their tastes of woodland and their wild side. When I go collecting mushrooms with my team, we never know how many ceps, chanterelles, coulemelles, or coprins we will find.
I also appreciate many vegetables from the past which have often been somewhat forgotten, like many varieties of cabbage, winter squash or Jerusalem artichoke. They deserve a special place on our menus. I buy my vegetables on the market at Joigny, Burgundy near our restaurant or from two truck farmers with whom we have worked for dozens of years.
What is your favorite recipe?
My favourite recipe is the one I will create tomorrow. I enjoy always striving for a challenge: creating a new dish, building a new menu, and always trying to do better. My latest creation is a piece of beef cooked half fried, half Tartare.
On our menu, we always try to be as descriptive as possible and call it “Hereford Beef filet in chaud-froid (hot-cold) with creamed corn, Chanterelle, and green beans with truffle”.
What advice do you have for somebody willing to become a chef?
Before you start, define your goals, the guest-house, the region, the style of your cuisine, but also the life you want… My personal choice was to take over the family business founded by my grandmother in 1945. I could have chosen a very different style.
Starting with your mission is essential because you need to be passionate to stay at the top. It requires a lot of daily hard work and a strong discipline to create a unique experience for each of your customers.
Who has helped you the most in becoming one of the most-renowned chefs?
First, my parents gave me a passion for this profession and discipline. I had to make a name for myself which has not been easy because the environment is so selective and because each chef has a strong personality.
Two great chefs, Jean and Pierre Troisgros, have been my professors and have shared their talents with me.
Today, my 75 employee team helps me bring daily pleasure to our clients. 15 of them been working with me for the last 10 to 20 years. I owe a lot to all of them.
Jean-Michel Lorain is the Chefs’ European Coordinator at Relais & Châteaux, a family of 480 prestigious hotels and restaurants in 56 countries. He is also the owner of the Relais & Châteaux La Côte Saint-Jacques in Burgundy, France.
