My life in travel Fred Sirieix
The TV maître d’hôtel on simple food, his love of Paris and adventures with Gordon and Gino
I HAD THE MOST AMAZING STEAK IN SAN SEBASTIAN when we went to Casa Julian for Remarkable Places to Eat. At the time, I said: “If you’re going to die, this is what you want.” It was cooked on the fire and came from a big, fat milking cow at the end of its life. In Jamaica last year I had lobster fished out of the sea in front of my eyes and grilled on an open fire. I love haute cuisine but, by and large, I like real food done simply. It’s like when you have a beautiful tomato in the summer. Just cut it in half, add olive oil, salt and pepper, et voila.
I DIDN’T GO ON HOLIDAY THIS YEAR but I’ve been filming in Bristol, Yorkshire and the New Forest. I’m lucky to go away with my job. I would normally go to France three or four times a year but you have to take this year for what it is. When lockdown was eased, I went to see my parents in Limoges for a weekend. My mum took me to a restaurant where it cost €23 per person for three courses, with coffee and an aperitif. We had a salad with foie gras and smoked duck, then leg of lamb cooked with gratin dauphinois. It was just perfect.
WHENEVER I’M IN PARIS, I FEEL SO ALIVE. I miss it. You eat well, you’re immersed in history, the architecture is beautiful with the grand boulevards and I love the feeling of freedom and excitement. You can have some oysters and chablis at t a café and watch the world go by. You talk to a stranger and somehow find you’re talking about philosophy and nd the meaning of life. I love that. .
I RANDOMLY LY GO AND SEE DIFFERFFERENT PLACES CES when I’m in Paris. Two or three years ago, o, I came across an old fencing c l u b, Salle e d’Armes Couudurier. I walked ed in and they let me watch. They hey had pictures s of people actually ally duelling for or blood in the he
1940s. I like talking to people so I was there for two hours.
I TRAVELLED AROUND S SOUTH AMERICA when I was 26, wh which was fantastic. In Chile, I went t through the Maipo Valley, doin doing wine tastings. At Machu P Picchu in Peru, I rememb remember running up to t the Sun Gate at daw dawn. I was so exhila exhilarated. Looking at the Andes, y you feel on top of the world. I In Santiago I w went to Barrio Bellavis ista, ta, where Pablo Neruda lived. I love poetr poetry and it was g great to see his hou house and soak in the
atmosphere. I drove to Iquique and met a French guy who had just had a breakdown. He took us to the market, bought fish and made a ceviche. When you’re young, you have all these encounters.
GOING TO LA PAZ WAS ONE OF THE BEST THINGS I DID. When you arrive on the plane, you see how the city is built almost in a bucket. It’s bustling. I’d love to go back on a road trip with Gordon [Ramsay] and Gino [D’Acampo]. But you have to be careful. I almost got mugged. My mate and I met some young kids and wanted to give them money but, the next day, we realised we were being followed and had to get out.
WE WENT TO TEXAS LAST YEAR with Gordon and Gino and had a bath in a waterhole. It’s so hot outside and you feel like a cowboy. Just incredible. On the road trips, when I see new things, I’m like a kid in a sweet shop. I learn, I meet people and I think, wow, I’m living life to the full. When the pandemic
began and we couldn’t travel I was thinking about people we met in the US.
I LOVE GOING TO JAMAICA TO UNWIND. I’ve been going for a few years to Sandals in Negril. They look after me and I love the setting. I’ll go to the gym, go for a long walk, scuba dive, stay on the beach, have a cocktail, listen to music, read a book, have dinner and a drink. The diving is unbelievable, down to 40ft, fish everywhere, very clear. I love the peace underwater, when your breathing slows down. It’s like having a stroll under the sea.
I REMEMBER GOING TO THE VENDÉE, a beautiful region on the west coast of France, with my parents and my brother when I was young. We would rent a place, have barbecues and make friends. We built sandcastles on the beach and went surfing. We used to go skiing in winter with my cousins. We’d take a flat in Courchevel or Les Deux Alpes and race from morning to night.
I LOVE THE ANTICIPATION OF THE AIRPORT. I go early because I worry about missing my flight, then have coffee and breakfast or lunch. It’s like time stands still and I love that. I don’t like it when you arrive in New York, for example, and have queues at customs and border agents being difficult, taking you into a room to check who you are.
AN AMAZING RESTAURANT FOR A DRINK is Chez Black on the seafront in Positano in Italy. Last time, I had a fantastic Brunello di Montalcino 2012 red, with superb food from the Amalfi coast.
I’D LIKE TO GO TO GREECE NEXT. I love the beauty of the islands, the clarity of the water and the food.