Globally acclaimed chefs gather to celebrate French cuisine

Hanoi (VNA) - Michelin star chef Raphael Le Mancq has flown in from Haute-Savoie, France, with goodies in his luggage to share the taste of France with people in Vietnam at the Gout de France (Good France) on March 21 night.

A global event to celebrate French gastronomy, Gout de France is organised according to the foundation of 3 Michelin star chef Alain Ducasse and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Development (France) Laurent Fabius.

On March 21, a thousand chefs in 150 countries and five continents will prepare a French meal at the same time to celebrate the excellence, diversity and modernity of French gastronomy.

In Hanoi, celebrated chef Le Mancq, together with more than 20 other talented chefs, will present a French cuisine menu specially created for the event for one night only.

Hanoi seems to dominate the event with the participation of 14 chefs from the top French restaurants in the city, such as French Grill in the JW Marriott Hotel, Le Beaulieu in the Hotel Sofitel Legend Metropole, Café Lautrec in the Hôtel de l’Opera, La Cheminée in the Pullman Ha Noi Hotel, Café du Lac at Intercontinental Ha Noi Westlake, La Table du Chef and Journey to the East.

While Hue and Da Nang have one chef each representing the cities at the event, the ancient port city of Hoi An has two participants from Annam restaurant in the Victoria Hotel, and Faifo restaurant from the Royal Hoi An Hotel.

The gastronomy event will also showcase six other Vietnamese and French chefs in HCM City. They are the kitchen’s conductors of Social Club in Hôtel des Arts, L’Olivier in Sofitel Plaza Saigon, Annamite, Bistro Song Vie, Cobalt and Le Bordeaux.

Most of the chefs will present a special menu showcasing France’s specialties such as beef, oyster, foie gras, scallops and cheese. Connoisseurs can also taste the Bourgogne snail, which is offered by the Maison Vie restaurant in Hanoi.

French Ambassador to Vietnam Jean Noel Poirier said the Gout de France in 2015 witnessed great success with the participation of over 100,000 foodies from more than 1,300 restaurants (of which 85 percent are located outside of France) and 150 French Embassies on five continents.

“In Vietnam, Gout de France has created a significant influence as the number of chefs and restaurants joining the event has increased this year,” he said.

The Embassy will also host a French dinner with high school and university students on March 21 night.

“As the cost for a French dinner may be beyond the budget of a student, we do open this dinner to young people, expecting they will have a nice experience to learn about France and its cuisine,” he said.

In Vietnam, the cost of a Gout de France dinner ranges from 800,000 to 3.6 million VND.-VNA