‘We should share knowledge if we want to grow’: Alain Ducasse

The living chef with the most Michelin stars, Alain Ducasse, on growing up on a farm in France, sharing his memoirs and passing on the baton

Alain Ducasse (centre) with his team. (Photo courtesy: École Ducasse Abu Dhabi Studio)

Two experiences shaped Alain Ducasse, the superchef with 21 Michelin stars. One was understanding the taste of fresh produce on his parents’ farm. The other was surviving a plane crash at 27 and spending a year in a hospital bed. That was the time when his mind got creative, thinking up unusual flavours. Now, at 67, Ducasse heads an empire of over 30 restaurants spread across the world. The French-born Monégasque chef (specialising in cuisine of Monaco) also runs a network of schools to impart training in French culinary expertise and pastry arts. He doesn’t believe in looking back. He believes, “You must allow people to evolve, help them grow, make them feel gratified.” Having recently released his memoir Good Taste: A Life of Food and Passion (Gallic Books), he is looking to open a new restaurant in Rome. We met him at the launch of the culinary school, École Ducasse Abu Dhabi Studio, where he spoke about the need for sharing knowledge, traditional cooking methodologies and his hopes for Indian cuisine.

You recently launched the École Ducasse Abu Dhabi Studio in partnership with Erth Abu Dhabi. India’s first École Ducasse campus was inaugurated at the Indian School of Hospitality, Gurugram, in 2022. How important is it for you to train future generations?
Sharing of knowledge is essential. We shouldn’t keep what we know to ourselves if we want to grow and become creators. I apply the same philosophy to my books. Good Taste, for instance, is about what I have done and will be doing. This is only the beginning as I have a lot planned. I am always discovering new approaches, countries, cuisines. The more I see, the less I know.

You now have multiple restaurants with Michelin stars. Do you remember the moment from 1990 when your Monaco restaurant Louis XV was awarded three Michelin stars? That was the first of your restaurants to win the accolade.
At the time, there were no cellphones. I was at a restaurant in Tokyo and my assistant was German-speaking and not very fluent in French. She called me to say that someone from Michelin had wanted to speak to me, but she was very flustered and didn’t know why. She put him through, and he told me that my restaurant had received three Michelin stars. Coincidentally, I took the call on the same phone that had been used by Joël Robuchon three years earlier to learn that he had been awarded Michelin stars.

How do you see traditional methods such as slow cooking and “farm-to-table” becoming a trend?
This is not a trend but the only truth. At any Ducasse restaurant, we have always sourced local produce and let it define our cooking based on what we know about French cuisine and applying what is best for that location. My first plant-based menu (Jardins de Provence) dates back to May 1987. A Michelin star for this kind of food was completely new at the time.

The terrace at École Ducasse Abu Dhabi Studio. (Photo courtesy: École Ducasse Abu Dhabi Studio)

You grew up on a farm in provincial France. How did that influence you? Also, what is comfort food for you?
My grandmother prepared our meals and once it was decided what each would eat, we’d go together to the kitchen garden to pluck ripe vegetables she needed for the day’s menu. I loved to see her cook. My comfort food is Gratin Dauphinois (French gratin of sliced raw potatoes baked in cream, from the Dauphiné region in south-eastern France).

How would you describe the future of Indian cuisine? Do you have a favourite Indian restaurant?
I have a lot of hope from Indian cuisine. I found it very enticing when I was in India for the opening of the École Ducasse campus. There was a lot of energy, great inspiration and a lot of talent. At the institute, trainee chefs made lunch, where they applied their training in French cuisine with a lot of interesting touches. My favourite Indian restaurant is Indian Accent.