“At Mont-Saint-Michel, I find the cooking that I did with my grandmother”

Jean Imbert. But, you know, I don’t particularly come from the world of luxury. Before having 900 people under my responsibility in the establishments for which I work, I ran my restaurant alone. Personnel problems, the slightest light bulb that breaks, the fridge that breaks in the night: it’s for you! This was my life for seventeen years. Here, in Mont-Saint-Michel, I find what I did with my grandmother: a cuisine very anchored in the place, in a small house. Luxury but authentic! I have always been attracted to heritage brands. The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, the Plaza Athénée, the Martinez, the Dior house or the Brando in Polynesia have this thing in common: they have a history! In the same spirit, Mont-Saint-Michel, marvel of the West, is the most iconic site in France… apart from Paris.

How did you get involved in the Logis Sainte-Catherine adventure?

When Valérie Le Guern Gilbert, the boss of Mauviel with whom I have worked since I was 22, told me about this call for tenders, I accepted instantly. I really wanted a project that would refocus me. And this place is crazy!

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Make us dream…

It is a typical house in this corner of Normandy, perched on the Mount with a garden in front, in a pedestrian street. Mother Poulard’s family lived there. I would not have liked to take over an existing restaurant. In the evening, everything will be lit by candlelight. We imagined a sensitive brewery that has a soul. On the menu, for example, there will be spider crab in shepherd’s pie or shellfish lasagna. These are my own dishes, which I prepare for my friends in Brittany and which I have never seen on the menu of other restaurants.

Is it a long love story between Mauviel saucepans and you?

Copper has always made me dream. At 15, I asked my grandmother for my first Mauviel pans. This is a historic, family-run house that has real culinary DNA! When I started my first restaurant, at 22, I wanted copper pans: I had the impression that this utensil would make me a better cook. In my office, I kept my grandmother’s first saucepan, in which she made her béarnaise. I have a bit of a fetish for objects that have a soul! Valérie Le Guern Gilbert has always followed and supported me.

Wouldn’t Mont-Saint-Michel also taste like a Proust madeleine to you?

Of course ! We often went there with my parents when I was little. Our family cabin, next to Cap Fréhel, is an hour’s drive away. At the time, we went to eat at Mère Poulard. I still remember the sound of beaten eggs at the entrance. I’ll come back and sit there when I’m here! We are not in competition but in complementarity! It would be wonderful if Mont-Saint-Michel became a gastronomic destination. I would like us to be seen as one of the best restaurants in the region. And that local people come specially to dine there.

“The example of Michael Jordan pulled me up. It’s crazy how many times he lost and finally won.”

Did the local terroir particularly speak to you?

This is the repertoire that I like to cook! Spider crab, line fish, artichokes, cauliflower, broccoli. Here, everything is seasonal: fruit, vegetables, fishing such as scallops, oysters… Same idea for the salt meadow lamb: there won’t be any on the menu before Easter! I didn’t suddenly become a ‘local’ chef because it was stylish. Why go to the ends of the earth to find something when you have beautiful products from a local guy?

You are on the Normandy-Brittany border. Have you respected the parity of these two flavorful regions?

For household peace, yes! But is there such a big difference between Chausey lobster or Bréhat lobster? The scallops from Normandy and those from Erquy? I think that, seen from a distance, we have the impression that it is the same thing, seen up close it is another debate. [Il rit.]

What do your tables in Los Angeles, Paris, Saint-Barth and Mont-Saint-Michel have in common? Is there a Jean Imbert signature?

I don’t want chains or a concept available everywhere. Each of my restaurants must be anchored in its ‘geography’. My method, for each person, is to start from the place: what is its DNA? For example, if we take Saint-Barth, it is the Caribbean, the spirit of a hut, sweet and savory. They serve chicken cooked in a chocolate pod crust, or sea bass in a sand crust from Flamands beach, lobster, with small ravioli of vegetarian peppers produced on the island by Jean-Michel.

Who are your mentors? Do you belong to a family of chefs?

Of course, I have a lot of respect for famous chefs, builders like Michel Guérard, Paul Bocuse or Alain Ducasse. But the only person who really made me want to become a chef was my grandmother, my muse! And then, it may seem more unexpected, but the example of Michael Jordan really lifted me up! I watched all his matches. It’s crazy how many times he lost…only to win. The day I have it at my table, I retire!

How do you manage your schedule when you have to juggle establishments across the world?

It’s an intense life with a lot of pressure on your shoulders. Taking a plane, arriving at 6 a.m., moving on to another establishment, it has become my daily life. Having fifteen minutes to spare means being able to respond to emails and make several calls. I am very proud to have been surrounded by a small, very close-knit team for a long time. We learned to become ultra-efficient and to decide in two hours what took us two months five years ago. Zero superfluous!

Does this 1,000 an hour pace leave you time for a personal life?

I’m getting organized! I have remained very close to my family and I try to spend at least two days a month in Brittany.

“One of my greatest pride: Mamie, the restaurant that I started with my grandmother”

Chefs have become the darlings of social networks, TV… Is that part of the job today?

I emerged with ‘Top Chef’ and, for the first few years, I was the most followed chef in the world on Instagram. I loved the instantaneous side of the support. Today, I think I am one of the starred chefs in France who posts the least. Influencer is not my job. I want to create menus and work on new restaurants. I need reality. And, when I’m not working, I want to be anchored in real life: spending time with my loved ones, away from my work.

Twenty years later, how do you view your journey and your career?

As much on a personal level I would have done things differently. However, professionally, I wouldn’t change anything. Not even my failure in New York. One of my greatest pride remains Mamie, the restaurant that I started with my grandmother. Even a table on the Moon would not have given me such intense emotions! I accomplished all the dreams I had ten years ago. I now challenge myself on new authentic projects. If you look at social networks, you have the impression that everything is rosy, but I also have periods of very deep questioning.

What is the secret to making your dreams come true?

Never give up. If you knew how many times I went to see François Delahaye, the boss of the Plaza Athénée, how many times he threw me out before recruiting me! [Il rit.] Other well-known Parisian palaces had made me offers, but I wanted the Plaza! Same thing for the Venice-Simplon-Orient-Express. I had a story that spoke for me, the finale of ‘Top Chef’ which took place on board the train. And I was friends with the chief who officiated there for thirty-seven years. I dreamed of taking over from him.

What are your next challenges?

My future project will be on the west coast of the United States. But at the moment I want to dedicate myself to things that are not directly related to my job. Write a book, sure. I would like to direct a film one day. I started writing a script and the beginning of a novel, it made my teams laugh. I’m also thinking about transforming my grandmother’s house in the Paris suburbs into a cooking school.

Celebrities love your Parisian restaurants. Will you be able to convince them to come to Mont-Saint-Michel?

I’ve already spoken to them about it. I even showed the photo to Pharrell and Beyoncé… They thought the place was crazy!