The chef: a look back at Joël Césari's career!
Joël Césari, the artist. While his colourful orange, red and two-tone spectacles reveal his originality at a glance, his creativity is undoubtedly inspired by the Jura region. A land of lakes, forests, mountains and vegetable gardens, this chef born and settled in Dole finds inspiration in his region, but above all in its raw ingredients that he transforms to perfection. Let's take a closer look at a brilliantly audacious chef.
As first a protégé of renowned Jura chef, André Jeunet and his son, Jean-Paul, followed by a stint in Paris at the Ferme Saint-Simon, the Jardins du Parc Montsouris, Dodin-Bouffant and Jacques Cagna's restaurant, and then a spell with three-starred chef Jacques Lameloise, Joël Césari has certainly earned his spurs. Driven by a desire to return to his roots, he moved to Dole in 1988, where he ran Les Templiers for seventeen years, before moving on to La Chaumière.
Here, since 2004, he has been creating his own style of cuisine, based on produce that stands on its own merits, and in which artifice and technique fade into the background, leaving only the emotions of the taste buds to shine through. His generosity of heart and soul come to life in every dish. At Joël Césari's table, you discover the man, his philosophy and his values: fresh, seasonal, local produce to reduce the impact on the environment and a deep respect for the cycles of nature and the work of the producers. Bite into vegetables, feast on intense flavours and be wowed by dishes that positively ooze sincerity - this is just one of the truths that drives this Dolois chef. "The least we can do for a producer is to cut, cook and season their product correctly. That is the respect we owe them, for the energy and passion they put into providing the best the land has to offer." Vegetables, herbs, fruit, meat and fish... At La Chaumière, it is the seasons that dictate the menu, because, "The most important thing on the plate is the produce." A campaigner for sustainable fishing and an ardent advocate of authenticity, Joël Césari is committed to 'eating well' and 'living well' . These are values he shares with his team, convinced that together we can go further, through respect, knowledge and the sharing of savoir-faire.
A man of conviction and a man who cares, Joël Césari is no less an artist than his look suggests. To produce his mouthwatering dishes, "I first write everything down, then I draw it, and only then do I cook.” Composing, sketching and then setting to music a skilfully orchestrated score, Joël is a true artist, using knives like others use paintbrushes and with the produce as his subject. Rigour, mastery and daring allow him to freely wander the shores of local and sometimes international gastronomy, with a resolutely contemporary flair.
Native of the Jura region, renowned innovator, champion of the seasons and the 'taste of things', Joël Césari has not finished mapping out his route from Dole to a gastronomic paradise that he fashions each and every day with the passion of a true connoisseur.
