We’ve Lost The God Father of Michelin the most decorated Chef in the World, he kept all of us on our toes ! Even when we were sleeping ! Merci Chef, God Bless A post shared by Gordon Ramsay (@gordongram) on Aug 6, 2018 at 4:00am PDT<doc-sep>JOEL Robuchon, the famous chef who shook up the stuffy world of French haute cuisine and mentored hothead TV cook Gordon Ramsay, has died at 73. A spokeswoman for Mr Robuchon, who for years held more Michelin stars than anyone else in the world, confirmed his death. French media reported he died of cancer in Geneva. Mr Robuchon’s career was one of superlatives. He was named among the best craftsmen in France in 1976, crowned cook of the century in 1990 and chosen to be one of the cooks at the “dinner of the century”. He was known for constant innovation and playfulness in the kitchen, qualities that made him a revelation to the conservative world of French cuisine. He built a gourmet empire that included restaurants in Paris, Tokyo, Las Vegas and New York City. “To describe Joel Robuchon as a cook is a bit like calling Pablo Picasso a painter, Luciano Pavarotti a singer, Frederic Chopin a pianist,” cook and food writer Patricia Wells wrote in L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, a book about the chef and his students. “Joel Robuchon will undoubtedly go down as the artist who most influenced the 20th century world of cuisine.” Many of France’s greatest chefs echoed her tribute. Prominent Michelin-starred French chef Alain Ducasse, who was seen by some as a rival to Mr Robuchon, told AP: “French cuisine owes a tribute to a man who for more than 40 years has made it shine throughout the world. “Robuchon was a demanding colleague but this nature was ultimately the solid foundation of our esteem,” Mr Ducasse, 61, said. Pierre Gagnaire, a Michelin three-star chef, wrote on his Instagram account: “The best among us is gone. All my thoughts to his family.” Marc Veyrat, whose restaurant also holds three Michelin stars, called Mr Robuchon the “prince of French cuisine” on RTL radio, adding: “I’m not afraid to say he inspired me.” Tragic summer for foodies continues. First Bourdain, then Jonathan Gold, now French "genius of gastronomy" Joel Robuchon dies https://t.co/IMZTVVuFqD — Dan Stewart (@thatdanstewart) August 6, 2018 While Mr Robuchon was no stranger to fancy food — truffles and caviar were among his favourites — his dishes often were described as simple because he preached the use of only three or four ingredients. His goal was always to show off, not mask, their flavours. He started a revolution with his “Atelier” (meaning “workshop” in French) business model: small, intimate restaurants where diners sat at a counter surrounding the kitchen. They didn’t take reservations and many didn’t even have tables. His goal, Mr Robuchon said, was to make diners feel comfortable, let them interact with the chef and above all, put the focus back on the food. It was partially a rebuke to the Michelin star regime, which awards points not just for technique, but also for ambience and service. But Michelin, and just about everyone else, gobbled it up. And thanks to Ateliers around the world, Mr Robuchon reached a total of 32 Michelin stars in 2016 — a record — and still held 31 stars this year, including five three-star restaurants. Notably, Mr Robuchon mentored the hot-tempered British chef Gordon Ramsay — and ironically, once threw a plate at him in frustration. “I remember it was a dish of langoustine ravioli,” Mr Robuchon told the Telegraph in 2003. “He hadn’t made it properly. I told him so and Gordon reacted in a very arrogant manner.” Born just before the end of World War II in the French town of Poitiers, Mr Robuchon studied at a seminary from a young age and considered becoming a priest. But hours spent cooking with the nuns convinced him he had another calling. He got his professional start at age 15 at a local restaurant and by 29 was running the kitchen and managing 90 chefs at a large Paris hotel. For years, his culinary home was Jamin, a restaurant near the Eiffel Tower which he opened in 1981. The restaurant racked up a Michelin star a year during its first three years — a feat no one had previously accomplished. The wait for a reservation was two months, even though the price without wine was $200. Even at this classic restaurant, signs of the ways Mr Robuchon would shake up the culinary scene could be found. For one, his most famous dish was the lowly mashed potato. “These mashed potatoes, it’s true, made my reputation. I owe everything to these mashed potatoes,” he said once during a demonstration of how to make the almost liquid dish. “Maybe it’s a little bit of nostalgia, Proust’s madeleines. Everyone has in his memory the mashed potatoes of his mother, the mashed potatoes of his grandmother.” The idea that a restaurant might be a warm, casual place, rather than a stuffy temple to awkward food, was taking root. It was, in part, a rejection of “nouvelle cuisine” — the movement that made French chefs notorious for small plates, exquisitely presented but often not all that satisfying. But, as long promised, Mr Robuchon hung up his whisk in 1996, at the age of 51. “You have to know when it’s time to quit,” the chef told AP at the time. “A great chef has to be in great shape. Cooking is tough. It’s like being an athlete who has to stay really fit.” He would still consult with other chefs, work on a line of prepared foods and oversee restaurants across the world, but he declared that he was done slaving away all day at the stove. And that, some say, is when his career really took off. In 2003, he came out of retirement to create the Atelier — one opened in Paris and one in Tokyo nearly simultaneously. From there, he brought them to cities all over Asia, Europe and the United States, and the Michelin stars followed fast and furiously. Guy Job, who produced Mr Robuchon’s cooking shows, called it “three-star food with stainless steel cutlery and glass glasses, not crystal ones”.<doc-sep>The food world is mourning the loss of Joël Robuchon, who was the world’s most Michelin-starred chef. The French culinary icon, who had been fighting cancer, died Monday in Switzerland at 73, CNN reported. Robuchon owned restaurants all over the world, in cities from Paris to Bangkok to Las Vegas. He was especially known for his mashed potato recipe, which customers demand at all his restaurants. (The key to the recipe is keeping the potatoes hot while you add a whole lot of cold butter.) He’d also create signature dishes like langostine and truffle ravioli and slow-cooked pigeon with foie gras, according to BBC News. But in his personal life, he started avoiding his high-fat ingredients and lost 60 pounds. Maurice ROUGEMONT Getty Images He had a reputation for mentoring a new generation of chefs, and also had a reputation for having a bit of a temper in the kitchen. In fact, he once threw a plate at Gordon Ramsay when the young chef didn’t respond well to criticism. “Although [Ramsay] was very talented, his attitude had always been… difficult. At the end of every service, he used to fling his pan down on the stove and threaten to resign because I was so demanding,” Robuchon told The Telegraph. “This time, it really got on my nerves and so I threw a plate at him. But that is the only time I’ve ever thrown a plate at anyone.” Ramsay clearly did not have hard feelings in the end, and wrote an emotional tribute to his former mentor online. He and other admirers from the food world took to social media Monday to pay tribute to Robuchon's legacy. This content is imported from Instagram. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Shocked and very sad by the loss of my Mentor Joel Robuchon. The most rigorous,precise,demanding, ultra gifted King of all Chefs... RIP Monsieur Robuchon 🙏🕊 pic.twitter.com/RCx8cj5m1I — Eric Ripert (@ericripert) August 6, 2018 This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Thank you for the profound inspiration, Joël Robuchon. Our profession is in your debt. — Danny Meyer (@dhmeyer) August 6, 2018 This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Thinking of Joel Robuchon, and his mashed potatoes 🖤 — Nigella Lawson (@Nigella_Lawson) August 6, 2018 This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. RIP Chef Joel Robuchon. You the changed the whole game. I always thought of you as the Bill Walsh of gastronomy 🐐 pic.twitter.com/UFcjESKZqI — david chang (@davidchang) August 6, 2018 This content is imported from Instagram. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. RIP and thanks for all! https://t.co/q06gZdCxOS — Please get vaccinated! Do it for the World please. (@chefjoseandres) August 6, 2018 This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io<doc-sep>While Mr. Robuchon was no stranger to the fancy — truffles and caviar were among his favorite foods — his cuisine was often described as simple because he preached the use of only three or four ingredients in most dishes. His goal was always to show off, not mask, their flavors.<doc-sep>
Joël Robuchon was one of the world's most famous chefs. (CNN) — French celebrity chef Joël Robuchon has passed away at the age of 73, his spokeswoman confirmed to CNN Monday. Robuchon owned and ran restaurants on three continents and was the world’s most Michelin-starred chef, according to his website and his spokeswoman. Robuchon, who had been suffering with cancer, died in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday morning. The chef owned restaurants in cities across the world including Paris, Monaco, Hong Kong, Las Vegas, Tokyo and Bangkok. One of his best-known recipes was for mashed potatoes. ROBOTH François/Sygma via Getty Images Robuchon was named "Chef of the Century" by prestigious restaurant guide Gault & Millau. Benjamin Griveaux, a spokesman for the French government, said Robuchon would continue to “inspire the younger generation of chefs.” In her book “L’Atelier of Joël Robuchon,” cook and author Patricia Wells said the Frenchman would “undoubtedly go down as the artist who most influenced the 20th century world of cuisine.” She added: “To describe Joël Robuchon as a cook is a bit like calling Pablo Picasso a painter, Luciano Pavarotti a singer, Frederic Chopin a pianist.” A meteoric rise to the top Born in Poitiers, western France in 1945, Robuchon told CNN he first fell in love with cookery after entering a seminary, hoping to become a priest. “But I often found myself helping the nuns in the kitchen and thus discovered my passion for cooking. I began to cultivate my skills and aspirations at the age of 15, when I embarked on my first apprenticeship at Relais de Poitiers [hotel],” he said in 2011. Robuchon rose through the ranks at rapid speed, taking over as head chef at the Hotel Concorde La Fayette in Paris, at the age of 29. In 1981 he opened Café Jamin in Paris, which earned a Michelin star in each of its first three years – the first restaurant to achieve such a feat. VALERY HACHE/AFP/Getty Images Robuchon was famous for his mashed potatoes. Eight years later, Robuchon was awarded the “Chef of the Century” title by the prestigious restaurant guide Gault & Millau. In 1994 he opened Restaurant Joël Robuchon in Paris, which the International Herald Tribune acclaimed that same year as the best restaurant in the world. He eventually opened his own brand of restaurants across the world, taking his cuisine across the globe. In June 2018, his company closed its two restaurants in Singapore, with five Michelin stars between them. Speaking to Business Insider in 2014, Robuchon said: “The older I get, the more I realize the truth is: the simpler the food, the more exceptional it can be. “I never try to marry more than three flavors in one dish. I like walking into a kitchen and knowing that the dishes are identifiable and the ingredients within them easy to detect.” Robuchon’s legacy Hours after Robuchon’s death was announced, French President Emmanuel Macron paid tribute to the highly-decorated chef in a statement from the Elysee Palace. “Joël Robuchon died today, but his 32 Michelin stars shine bright in the constellation of world gastronomy. His name and style embody French cuisine all over the world, they symbolize a lifestyle, a demand for a job well done, and convey the richness of our traditions,” the statement read. It praised his attention to detail, ability to transform ingredients into mouthwatering dishes and his legacy. “In Paris or Las Vegas, New York, London, Hong Kong, Bangkok or Shanghai, gourmets rushed to the chef’s many restaurants to taste his famous mashed potato puree, as well as his truffle tart and cauliflower cream with caviar or his langoustine ravioli,” the statement continued. Robuchon was also known for his mentoring skills, helping to develop chefs such as Gordon Ramsay, Éric Ripert and Michael Caines. Writing on his Instagram page, Ramsay said: “We’ve Lost The God Father of Michelin the most decorated Chef in the World, he kept all of us on our toes ! Even when we were sleeping ! Merci Chef, God Bless.” I loved every mouthful of food cooked by this man, sad loss . RIP Chef pic.twitter.com/JBsikEKAVH — Michel Roux Jr (@michelrouxjr) August 6, 2018 Michel Roux Jr., renowned Michelin-starred chef patron at Le Gavroche in London, wrote a simple tribute on Twitter, “I loved every mouthful of food cooked by this man, sad loss.