Meet the pastry chef at Interim Restaurant

Those who have tasted his desserts will find it no surprise that the story of how Franck Oysel landed in Memphis begins with French pastries.

“My wife, Hanna, who is originally from Memphis, taught English in France after college and volunteered at the pastry shop where I worked,” Oysel said. “We fell in love, and I moved to Memphis to be with her five years ago.”

While in France, Oysel taught his future wife how to make French pastries in exchange for English lessons.

It’s a fairy tale story that brought a talented pastry chef to Memphis.

Oysel grew up in a small town in the Jura region of France, which is on the border of Switzerland near Geneva.

“My town is known for Comté cheese and La Vache qui Rit (The Laughing Cow),” he said. “I am also quite close to

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the Burgundy wine region, which happens to be some of my favorite red wine.”

Oysel had wanted to be a pastry chef since childhood. “Ever since I was about 8 years old due to the influence of my father, who is a chef,” he said.

Today, he is the executive pastry chef at Interim Restaurant. Every day, he creates French pastries and freshly baked breads for the restaurant. It should be noted, his pastries are not only delicious, but works of art.

This busy chef took some time out of his baking to answer a few questions.

Q: How did you get into the food business?

A: In France, you choose a career path when you are in middle school and due to my early exposure to culinary techniques at home, I was drawn to the patisserie craft that mixed both artistry and cuisine.

Thus, when I was 14 years old, I started working in the French pastry kitchens learning from Master Chefs as well as regional chefs. I focused on the art of

JOE RONDONE/THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL Pastry chef Franck Oysel prepares a dark chocolate ganache, coffee butter cream and sponge cake dessert called The Opera, at Interim Restaurant Wednesday, Oct. 2.

Jennifer Chandler Memphis Commercial Appeal USA TODAY NETWORK – TENN.