Emmanuel Renaut (born 26 January 1968) is a French

chef A chef is a professional Cook (profession), cook and tradesperson who is proficient in all aspects of outline of food preparation, food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term (), the di ...

, three

Michelin stars The ''Michelin Guides'' ( ; ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The ''Guide'' awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few restaurants in certain geographic ...

and

Meilleur Ouvrier de France ''Meilleur Ouvrier de France'' (MOF) is a competition for craftsmen held in France every four years. The winning candidates receive a medal. Description The title of ''Meilleur Ouvrier de France'' is a unique and prestigious award in France, a ...

in 2004. A former sous-chef of

Marc Veyrat Marc Veyrat (born 8 May 1950) is a French chef from the Haute-Savoie region, who specialises in molecular gastronomy and the use of mountain plants and herbs. Veyrat has obtained a total of nine Michelin Stars and is the first cook to get the pe ...

, he then founded his own restaurant ''Flocons de sel'' at Mégève.

Life and career

Born in

Soisy-sous-Montmorency Soisy-sous-Montmorency (, 'Soisy under Montmorency') is a commune in the Val-d'Oise department located north of Paris, France. History On 7 August 1850, a part of the territory of Soisy-sous-Montmorency was detached and merged with a part of ...

in the department of

Val d'Oise Val-d'Oise (, "Vale of the Oise") is a department in the Île-de-France region, Northern France. It was created in 1968 following the split of the Seine-et-Oise department. In 2019, Val-d'Oise had a population of 1,249,674.< ...

, Emmanuel Renaut grew up in the department of

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; ) is a French departments of France, department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne (river), Aisne. In 2020, it had a population of 529,374. Geography The department borders No ...

. During his childhood, he got interested in mountain and

skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow for basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International S ...

during trips at

Les Houches Les Houches (; Arpitan: ''Les Ouches'' or ''Les Oucies'') is an alpine commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Southeastern France. It is located just west of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, in the larger canton of ...

Haute-Savoie Haute-Savoie () is a Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region of Southeastern France, bordering both Switzerland and Italy. Its Prefectures in France, prefecture is Annecy. To the north is Lake Gene ...

. He made his

military service Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer military, volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription). Few nations, such ...

Chambéry Chambéry (, , ; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Chambèri'') is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of the Savoie Departments of France, department in the southeastern ...

with the Chasseurs Alpins. He joined the CFA of

Laon Laon () is a city in the Aisne Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. History Early history The Ancient Diocese of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held s ...

in 1984, training in

Étouvelles Étouvelles () is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Population See also *Communes of the Aisne department The following is a list of the 796 communes in the French department of Aisne. The co ...

and then in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. He joined the team of the Hôtel Le Lotti and then worked for

Christian Constant Christian Constant (born 18 May 1950) is a French chef and entrepreneur. Early life and career Christian Constant was born in Montauban, Tarn-et-Garonne in the region of Midi-Pyrénées. He began his career as a chef in 1988 at the Hôtel Cri ...

at the

Hôtel de Crillon Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel () is a historic luxury hotel in Paris which opened in 1909 in a building dating to 1758. Located at the foot of the Champs-Élysées, the Crillon, along with the Hôtel de la Marine, is one of two identical s ...

as a first cooking assistant. He was then hired temporarily by

, head chef of the ''Auberge de l'Eridan'' in

Veyrier-du-Lac Veyrier-du-Lac (, literally ''Veyrier of the Lake'') is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Haute-Savoie department The following is a li ...

, and became a sous-chef for four years. He then worked with the cooking and pastry chef

Yves Thuriès Yves Thuriès (born June 5, 1938) is a French cooking and pastry chef, twice Meilleur Ouvrier de France. Life and career Early life and training Yves Thuriès was born in the village of Lempaut in the department of Tarn. He began at age f ...

and later in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

where he was for one year the head chef of ''

Claridge's Claridge's is a 5-star hotels, 5-star hotel at the corner of Brook Street, London, Brook Street and Davies Street in Mayfair, London. The hotel is owned and managed by the Maybourne Hotel Group. History Founding Claridge's traces its origins to ...

''. In 1998, Emmanuel Renaut established himself in Mégève in

and founded his own restaurant ''Flocons de sel''. He received his first Michelin star in 2003, the second one in 2006, and his third in 2012. In 2007, he published ''La Montagne et le cuisinier'' with Isabelle Hintzy and Catherine de Montalembert. In 2012, Emmanuel Renaut was named "Cooking Chef of the Year", succeeding to Jean-François Piège (2011),

Gilles Goujon Gilles Goujon (born 10 December 1961) is a French chef and owner of the restaurant ''L'Auberge du Vieux Puits'' (roughly "The Old Well Inn") in Fontjoncouse, Aude. His restaurant has earned three Michelin stars, the first being awarded in 2010. ...

(2010),

Éric Fréchon Éric Frechon (born 16 November 1963) is a French chef, Meilleur Ouvrier de France and three stars at the Guide Michelin. He has been described as "chef royalty" and received positive reviews as chef of the restaurant ''Épicure'' at the Hôtel ...

(2009), Yannick Alléno (2008) and

Anne-Sophie Pic Anne-Sophie Pic (, born 12 July 1969) is a French chef best known for regaining three Michelin stars for her restaurant, Maison Pic, in southeast France. She is the fourth female chef to win three Michelin stars, and was named the Best Female ...

(2007).

Cooking style

For the

food critic A food critic, food writer, or restaurant critic is a writer who analyzes food or restaurants and then publishes the results of their findings to the public. Terminology "Food writer" is often used as a broad term that encompasses someone who w ...

Gilles Pudlowski Gilles Pudlowski (born 15 November 1950 in Metz, Moselle) is a French journalist, writer, literary and gastronomic critic of Polish descent. He writes the blog ''les Pieds dans le Plat'', writes for ''Saveurs'', ''Cuisine et Vins de France'' and ...

, Emmanuel Renaut belongs to a "new generation of chef who re-invent the local products with malice", which brings him closer from chef

Alain Passard Alain Passard (; born 4 August 1956 at La Guerche-de-Bretagne, France) is a French chef and owner of the three Michelin star restaurant L'Arpège in Paris. The son of musicians, Passard plays the saxophone. History and mentors Alain Passard ...

. François Simon estimates his cooking style "very close from the Savoyard local products". The chief redactor of the Guide Michelin Juliane Caspar qualifies his style of "very subtle" and find his compositions very "surprising and harmonious".

Personal life

The family of Emmanuel Renaut is from

Picardy Picardy (; Picard language, Picard and , , ) is a historical and cultural territory and a former regions of France, administrative region located in northern France. The first mentions of this province date back to the Middle Ages: it gained it ...

. His mother Bernadette Clément owns a

gîte A gîte or gite () is, typically, a holiday rental home in France, but there are many interpretations of the term 'gîte'. They range from a gîtes d'etape — a hostel, for walkers and cyclists — to a gîte rural, a holiday home in the countr ...

in Coucy-lès-Eppes,

. He met his wife Kristine during his trip in London. She works at the secretary of the ''

''. They have three children.

Books

*Emmanuel Renaut and Catherine de Montalembert, ''La Montagne et le cuisinier'', Aubanel, 2007, 229 pages ()

External links

Official website of the restaurant ''Flocons de Sel''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Renaut, Emmanuel 1968 births French chefs French male chefs Head chefs of Michelin-starred restaurants People from Soisy-sous-Montmorency Living people