Chefs cook up a storm for climate

France pulled out its culinary big guns on Monday for one of the greatest kitchen challenges ever: cooking lunch for the largest one-day gathering of world leaders in history.

Five chefs, each awarded stars by the demanding judges of the Michelin food guide, joined forces for a gastronomic tour de force to defend France’s culinary reputation at a climate summit in Paris.

Undaunted by the challenge of catering to banquets with their familiar perils of rubber chicken and agonisingly long waits, the quintet sought to tempt the palates of 150 leaders, from US President Barack Obama to China’s President Xi Jinping or Russia’s Vladimir Putin.

“It was a very good lunch, a surprising lunch, very friendly and relaxed,” Albanian President Bujar Nishani said after leaving his table.

Judging his meal “very tasty and delicious”, Nishani said his lunch was prepared with organic foods, “which go very well with this climate summit”.

He was among the 170 guests, including the leaders, to dine at the heavily-guarded Le Bourget conference centre.

Diners sat at 20 tables, the Elysee presidential palace said.

All the dishes left the kitchen for the tables in less than an hour so as not to delay leaders trying to avert a global climate catastrophe, said Guy Krenzer, of the fine-food Paris caterer, Lenotre.