French Gastronomy in Transition: Top Chefs Embrace Global Influences to Reignite Passion

From your mirepoix to your mise en place, the Michelin Guide to the five Mother Sauces: French cuisine has long been considered the pinnacle of gastronomy. Some consider France to have the world’s best food.

For centuries, aspiring chefs from all over the world have flocked to its cooking schools, such as Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, to be trained to the highest standards of French cuisine. However, in response to growing competition and criticism for having tired, unimaginative menus, President Emmanuel Macron’s government wants to send the country’s chefs abroad to learn from the rest of the world.

In a stunning blow to France’s prestige, Minister for Business Olivia Grégoire announced plans to allow the country’s best talents to discover and bring back trade secrets from other countries. “[French] Gastronomy has been facing the rise of foreign gastronomy since the end of the 1990s and has found itself left behind by the performance and influence of other countries,” Grégoire said at a news conference.

“It’s a proven fact: our competitors have ambition and means and they are developing effective strategies to make their cuisines shine. It’s our turn to be ambitious, willing, and armed for this competition on a world scale,”  said Alain Ducasse, one of France’s most renowned chefs.

A new French government resolution requiring restaurants to reveal how much food is cooked in-house is expected to reveal that half of the country’s restaurants prepare fresh meals.

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According to Thierry Marx, a two-Michelin-starred chef, only half of France’s 175,000 restaurants serve homemade food. “Many of them suffer because they are compared in terms of price to others who use ready-to-eat meals, or even ultra-processed food without telling their customers,” he went on to say.

Looking across the pond, the French are considering asking Britain for advice on how to revive their stagnant cuisine. Despite a recent poll in which the French ranked British food as the worst, the Minister of Economy and Finance praises the country’s mixologists.

The French are seeking advice from across Europe. Despite their declining success at the Bocuse d’Or, Denmark and Norway have won five of the eight potential top awards.

The government has allocated €1.5 million in public funds for the scheme, which will send French chefs abroad, as well as the establishment of a training center for young talent and an institute of Haute Gastronomy.