Classic cuisine with a modern touch

One of the stars at the recent 13th World Gourmet Festival at the Four Seasons Bangkok was of the famed Le 39V, a one Michelin-starred restaurant in Paris. At the festival, he led a cooking demonstration and created a special dinner featuring some of the dishes he is famous for.
His five-course dinner was fabulous and a reflection of his unique cooking philosophy. During the dinner, Vardon spared some time from his kitchen to tell us what it took to become a successful chef.
Born in Normandy into a family of charcutiers and farmers, Vardon grew up watching his grandmother cooking some great dishes and several classic recipes have been inherited from her.
“My grandmother was a farmer. She taught me that food should be made with love and for sharing,” he said via fellow food writer/translator Anantroj Thangsupanich.
“She taught me to have respect for what nature gives us. I cannot stand seeing people who don’t respect nature and don’t respect food,” he added.
After an apprenticeship with Jean-Pierre Morot-Gaudry and Alain Dutournier, Vardon worked at restaurants around the world, among them Spoon Benoit Tokyo and Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester. He’s now the executive chef at Le 39 V, which was awarded the first Michelin Star this year.
Billed as neo-classic, guests at Le 39 V initially thought the restaurant offered fusion, trendy and modern kinds of French food.
“That’s not what we do. We go for classic French cuisine,” he says.
And to do classic dishes, you need the best ingredients.
“My duty is to transform the best ingredients into beautiful cuisine – with love. That’s my philosophy,” he said, adding: “I choose the best natural ingredients that have a long and interesting history.”
He loves using veal in his cuisine, explaining that it’s tender and that makes it special. In fact the French elite in the old days had a personal preference for veal, rather than red meat.
People still prefer classic French cuisine these days, he insists. Molecular and fusion food has not really struck a chord with French diners and there is nostalgia for the great dishes of the good old days. Vardon is bringing back those classic creations.
“What’s true is the French don’t want to pay large amounts of money for food served in small portions on big plates. It’s just not worth it,” he said.
Just before we retreats to his kitchen again, Vardon was asked: what’s the biggest mistake in his career?
“Oh, on one occasion, I put a spare rib in the oven, and forgot about it!”

The writer would like to thank Anantroj Thangsupanich for his French-Thai interpretation.
  Dinner with the chef

Roast wild sea bass with raw and cooked Asparagus

INGREDIENTS
1 sea bass 4.5/5kg
65 very firm green asparagus stems

Sea bass sauce
Fish head
half a bulb of fennel
3 shallots
3 lemons
half a head of garlic
1 litre white chicken stock
fennel seeds to taste
peppercorns to taste

Asparagus mash and puree
1 kg wild green asparagus
70 ml olive oil to season
70 ml white chicken stock
Asparagus seasoning
18.75 g green asparagus finely diced when raw
12.5 g asparagus puree
62.5 g olive oil emulsion
37.5 g dried asparagus tips
62.5 g asparagus mash
2 lemons
25 ml truffle oil
15 cl chicken broth
2 soft-boiled eggs (35 mins at 68