LUXURY DRIVEN BY PASSION
In my conversations with friends, family, and acquaintances, I have noticed that people tend to think luxury restaurants, specifically ones with Michelin stars, are only for the rich. They are seen as expensive, fussy, and pretentious. Sometimes, this brings people to the conclusion that luxury restaurants are run by cocky chefs motivated by a lust for wealth, power or notoriety. But I believe that passion is often the driving force behind these chefs.
Notable chefs whom I admire didn’t start cooking because they wanted to be known worldwide. After all, there are much easier ways to do that than by becoming a chef. In my mind, food is an art, and I think the primary fuel that can produce true art is passion.
Alain Passard in his kitchen at L’Arpege. Pay no attention to the fact that I’m crying.
True drive, motivation, and persistence are characteristics that helped these chefs succeed in their field. For example, Passard, a huge inspiration to me, explains in his episode on Chef’s Table that he began his career at the age of 14 and he never looked back. He was trained by Alain Senderens, and he continues to work in the same kitchen he was trained in by Senderens, now known as the three-Michelin star restaurant, L'Arpège. Passard has now converted his restaurant to have an (almost) vegan menu that he changes every day. As he explains in his episode, he doesn’t want to write his recipes down and have to repeat the same recipe over and over again. Painters don’t sit down to paint the same painting every day, and food is art, so it makes sense to me that food isn’t always about replicating a recipe.
I find that great food has emotion and creativity, and those characteristics often derive from a magic ingredient – the passion with which the dish was created. So the next time you hear about a Michelin star or luxury restaurant, don’t judge it because of its price or fame. Consider that it may have become what it is because of the passion of the people who conceived it. If you have the opportunity to experience the result of that passion, check your judgment at the door, open your mind and senses, and allow yourself to be moved and inspired.
