EMOTION AND INSTINCT

French chef Pierre Gagnaire equates cooking with love

PÉtienne in the Loire, he completed his first apprenticeship in pastry-making at the age of 14, then trained at Paul Bocuse in Lyon and Chez Juliette under Jean ignard, and worked as a cook on the Surcouf navy ship during his military service. After two years of travelling, in 1976, he returned to the fold reluctantly, pressured by his parents, and joined the one Michelin-star Clos Fleuri in Saint-Priest-en-Jarez run by his father, which he maintained in the Michelin Guide’s good graces. aris, Bordeaux, Courchevel, London, Dubai, Danang, Tokyo, Hong .ong, Shanghai, Seoul and Las egas. These are just some of the locations of Pierre Gagnaire’s gastronomic empire – 18 establishments and 14 Michelin stars in total, not forgetting his collaboration with nine Fouquet’s brasseries worldwide – which continues to expand. Its presence, therefore, is global, but its origins firmly rooted in France. Born in 1950 near Saint