The secret ingredient of a successful event? As I have often mentioned in my previous articles: it is the attention paid to every detail of the customer’s request. Everything must be beautiful and magical and in harmony with his wishes.

Each element reflects the personality of the client. The decor, the ideas for entertainment and entertainment… But also the food!  It is a vital element of a celebration: it is also one of the things that guests anticipate most, especially in France.

For our receptions, we often call on Fauchon, a renowned “épicerie fine” and caterer in France, but also colleagues with whom we always have the pleasure of preparing delicious and distinguished menus.

 

On the occasion of the recent opening of their hotel on Boulevard Malesherbes, we will dedicate this article to Fauchon, as a way of congratulating him on this rare occasion where “a cater inaugurates a hotel business”.

Alexis Redivat, the Chef Cuisinier of Fauchon, was kind enough to talk to Alejandra Poupel Events’ team over a cup of coffee with the biscuits marked “F”, symbolic letter to the brand.

We had the opportunity to ask him for his opinion on wedding dinner parties and the origin of his inspirations that make such beautiful gourmet creations… and also, we asked him a tricky question which is what the menu would be if his own daughter was getting married.

What sets a good luxury caterer apart from others is its expertise in the events business. 

This industry, known for its moments of pressure, does not give us the right to make mistakes. At Alejandra Poupel Events, we want everything to be perfect, from the big “BANG” of the fireworks to the last of the smallest confetti. 

“Alexis to start, in your opinion, what is the biggest mistake in planning a wedding menu?”

“Mistakes? No mistakes! We do everything in our power to ensure that nothing is forgotten. Every detail counts: the menu must be elegant, harmonious, colourful and fresh. But more importantly it must meet the expectations of our customers and all their guests.”

It is not very easy to control everything and especially to anticipate the possibilities of forgetting and things that can happen during the planning and running of an event. Thus, we always advise our clients to hire one person for 8 to 10 guests.

It is the same at Fauchon: “We do top-of-the-range work. We put all the necessary staff in place to ensure an optimum quality of service. We make sure that our Maitres d’Hôtel are taking good care of the bride and groom and their guests, that they respond to their requests but above all know how to anticipate them.”

A tasteless expert will never surprise his customers with bland service.

For Chef Alexis, it is the seasons that “punctuate our menus”: “seasonal products guide us and inspire us to create our dishes.” He adds: “Beyond naturalness and seasonality, the inspirations come from the exchange between our chefs and our teams, the culinary trends that we try to anticipate.”

 

But the origin of his creations is not limited to the seasons and the exchanges within their teams. Like any artist, his inspiration exploits both his distant experiences and his present entourage, especially his dear person who accompanies him in his life: 

“My inspirations are multiple. They come all from my roots, my teachers, my travels, my readings. My wife also, who is a true source of inspiration. She knows how to create this intellectual bubbling of thoughts and suggestions.”

Returning to our basic objective, which is to satisfy the client, the latter is also a great source of new inspiration and ideas. Chef of Fauchon agrees: “The sometimes unexpected demands of our client, drive creativity and often lead us to beautiful discoveries.”

“Ideas and concepts can mature for several months or be born from a flash of genius! But always keep in mind to remain simple, elegant, respectful of the product and taste. ” – Alexis Redivat

Always open to ideas, we asked the Chef to talk to us about their concepts.

“No concept is more popular than another. We remain attentive to our customers and do not hesitate to make “tailor-made” to match the themes and atmospheres chosen by our client.”

His team had recently designed for us a “bucolic, vegetable column, where a few salty bites were hung like on wooden swings.” Beautiful.

Like in this photo we wanted to bring to life the magical gardens of a private estate.

Do you remember our entertainment philosophy? We want to involve our clients and guests as much as possible. Artistic and fun entertainment is an intergral part of the client experience.

In a happy tone, Alexis tells us that they had recently prepared an animation where “customers had to make with the chefs salty, frozen and ephemeral lollipops on dry ice.” He adds, “The point is to involve them in the making and to entertain them.”

This interview was a combination of professionalism and passion. Before concluding, we asked him: “Alexis, if it were your daughter’s wedding this winter, what would you serve?” 

Surprised, and smiling, he answers us: “If it were my daughter’s wedding, the menu would certainly be inspired by the history or origins of the bride and groom, so that it would have real meaning for them. But this winter, I would certainly have directed the bride and groom to a few scallops, accompanied by truffles for example. I would make a glass sculptured plate with lobster and put a led light under it for wow factor. Then a “whole piece” dish cut out and served in front of the guests, preceded by a scripted room entrance, a most elegant wedding cake to close the dinner. “

It is with a vision of a marriage filled of glitters and butterflies in the sky that we finish the cookies that have delighted our taste buds.