Renowned French chef Alain Passard stakes his culinary status on a plant-based menu
Three-Michelin-Star L'Arpège Goes Plant-Based
Alain Passard's L'Arpège, a renowned three-Michelin-star restaurant in Paris, has made a bold move by switching to an almost entirely plant-based menu. Since July 21, the restaurant in the seventh district has stopped serving meat, fish, dairy products, and eggs, marking a significant shift in French fine dining traditions [1][2][3][4][5].
L'Arpège, which has held three Michelin stars since 1996, is now serving dishes like mesclun praline with roasted almonds and melon carpaccio. The only exception to the change is honey that comes from Passard's own beehives.
This transition, while rare in the international haute cuisine scene, is not a surprise given Passard's history. In 2001, he removed red meat from his menu and focused more on vegetables, making him one of the first ambassadors of plant-based cuisine.
The decision to go plant-based represents a significant culinary challenge. Internationally, vegan haute cuisine is scarce, and L'Arpège's success in maintaining its three-Michelin-star rating after the change is a testament to Passard's culinary prowess.
Fellow French chef Claire Vallee, who won a Michelin star for her vegan restaurant in 2021, agrees. She states that creating plant-based dishes requires more preparation, knowledge, and research. Eleven Madison Park in New York has also kept its three stars after becoming exclusively vegan in 2021, demonstrating the potential for vegan haute cuisine.
Gwendal Poullennec, Michelin Guide international director, is "delighted" with the transition at L'Arpège and finds it a "positive approach". He, along with food critic Laurent Guez, who described Passard's announcement as a "major event", will continue to follow the evolution of L'Arpège, remaining faithful to their criteria.
Passard, aged 68, is staking his world-renowned reputation on this switch, which has been in the pipeline for a year. He has given himself two years to take his kitchen skills to a new level, and he is not concerned about losing his three stars, stating that they will have to deliver and maintain quality to do so.
Despite the change, L'Arpège remains a luxury dining experience, with lunch costing €260 (approximately RM1,270). Passard is not planning to become a vegan militant himself, as he still eats a little poultry and fish.
In the Netherlands, De Nieuwe Winkel's plant-based menu has earned it two Michelin stars, showing that vegan haute cuisine can thrive outside of France. As L'Arpège continues to push the boundaries of plant-based dining, it will be interesting to see how other restaurants follow suit.
[1] https://www.michelin.com/restaurants/france/paris/l-arpege [2] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62051285 [3] https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/20/dining/alain-passard-l-arpege-vegan.html [4] https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/food-drink/news/l-arpege-alain-passard-vegan-b2125710.html [5] https://www.theguardian.com/food/2022/jul/20/l-arpege-alain-passard-vegan-restaurant-michelin-star-paris
- Malaysia, with its growing focus on health-and-wellness, might consider learning from Alain Passard's L'Arpège, as the renowned restaurant has successfully transitioned to a primarily plant-based menu, showcasing the potential for plant-based cuisine in luxury dining experiences.
- Just like L'Arpège in Paris, cooking schools in Malaysia can embrace the environment by incorporating more plant-based recipes into their nutrition and lifestyle courses, promoting food-and-drink choices that are not only delicious but also beneficial for health-and-wellness and the environment.
- Alain Passard's culinary journey at L'Arpège can inspire Malaysian chefs to explore new techniques in fusion cooking, merging Malaysian flavors with international plant-based ingredients to create unique dishes that cater to both local palates and the growing demand for plant-based options in fitness-and-exercise-conscious lifestyles.
- In line with L'Arpége's success, a transformation could be led by a renowned Malaysian restaurant going plant-based, demonstrating the potential for vegan haute cuisine in Southeast Asia and encouraging more food establishments to focus on plant-based dishes, contributing positively to both health-and-wellness and the environment.
