François-Régis Gaudry: I search direct and sincere emotions

When and where were you born?

I was born near Lyon, on the 19^thof August 1975.

Something relevant about your education: what subject did you study? What were your paths to become a food critic? Where do you live?

I graduated Sciences Po Paris. First of all, I worked for Le Guide du Routard, a French touristic guide. I travelled and did reports abroad. I began writing restaurant reviews back then. I live in Paris, and when I’m not recording my radio show, I spend my week-ends with my family in my house in Normandy.

When and how was your passion for food/restaurants born?

I was lucky enough to be born in a family of gourmets. My mother is a great cook and I always loved my grandmothers’ cooking. Part of my family is from Corsica, where gastronomy is deeply anchored, and my father took me to great restaurants at an early age, which allowed me to discover great cooks such as Paul Bocuse in Lyon.

When did you start writing?

I really began writing for Le Fooding in the 2000s. I did resto reviews for them. Then, I was hired as a food critic for the national newspaper L’Express.

"On Va Déguster la France", Gaudry’s latest book (available from Amazon)

The cooks who changed his life? Passard and Bottura

What magazine/newspapers did you write/do you write for today?

I write restaurant reviews weekly for L’Express, and also interviews and long features. I’ve also published several books, the latest being On Va Déguster la France, translated in English as Lets’ Eat France!

What restaurants changed your life? Why?

Paul Bocuse, when I was 18, for the perfect French bourgeoise cuisine. L'Arpège d'Alain Passard in the 2000's for the reinvention of vegetable cooking. Massimo Bottura in 2009 for the fruitful relationship between gastronomy and art.

What dishes changed your life and why? As many as you can remember.

Alain Passard’s asparagus. The chef takes a bunch of thick green asparagus from Provence, slowly cooks them in a vertical way with butter for 3 hours in a cocotte. As a result, the asparagus tip is crunchy, the stem melts in the mouth and the foot is caramelized! The perfect sushis of Sushi Saito in Tokyo. ”Tutte le lingue del mondo” of Massimo Buttura: a brillant cooking process, a very strong symbolic significance, and an extraordinary tasting experience.

Fine dining or casual dining? Where do you think is restaurant scene going to?

It depends on the occasion ! I’d rather go for a casual dining experience, made with local products, full of simplicity and authenticity. But there will always remain a room for fine dining, providing that the restaurants focus on inventing the gastronomy of the future, based on seasonal products and an ecologically responsible approach. 

As a food critic, the more time flies, the more I search pure, direct, sincere emotions.

The dish that changed him? Passard’s Asparagus and Tutte le lingue del mondofrom Bottura (in the photo by Carlo Benvenuto)

The most undervalued chef? Pascal Barbot, Astrance

Who are, in your opinion, the more under-rated chefs?

Pascal Barbot, Alain Passard’s student, one of the most talented cooks of his generation. The loss of his third Michelin star this year is beyond understanding.

Who are the most brilliant young talents to bet on?

Magnus Nilsson (even if he closed his restaurant Fäviken), Maxime Frederic (the 29 year old Pastry Chef of Four Seasons George V in Paris), Julia Sedefdjian (25 years old, one Michelin star at Baieta in Paris).

Please add any ideas you'd love to talk about food industry.

How food industry, which processed, devitalized and perverted our daily food, will meet this challenge: make food healthier and more natural.