A personal Chef's cooking in your house

The press : The chef's in the papers !

Provence Posten | March 2008

An article in a dutch newspaper

I didn't translated it in english, but you can take a look by clicking here

PCI CHEF SPOTLIGHT !

From the PCI's newsletter June issue
" French chef Emmanuel Sofonea was born in Lyon, which he proudly claims is "the worldwide capital of gastronomy." He found his passion for cooking while working temporarily in a restaurant at the age of 15. It wasn’t the money that inspired him – the chef worked 12 hours a day, with only one day off a week, earning $25 a month!
He started his apprenticeship in a restaurant owned by the chef to the Shah of Iran, followed by a stint at the restaurant of Chef Roger Roucou, a giant in French gastronomy. His dedication and enthusiasm paid off – he graduated at the top of his class and was invited to participate as a finalist in Paris for the Best Apprentice of the Year competition.
Chef Sofonea started broadening his culinary repertoire by traveling and working at restaurants and hotels across the globe - from Switzerland, Luxembourg, Germany and France to Lebanon, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, the Caribbean and the USA.
The experience soon paid off when he was hired as private chef to the CEO of the famous French fashion store, Galeries Lafayette, and cooked for such VIPs as Yves Saint Laurent, Pierre Bergé, Sonia Rikiel, and ambassadors to the US and Japan.
Though his career was flourishing, Chef Sofonea was only 23 years old and itching for more travel and adventure.
He went backpacking to the south of France and within two days, landed the job of private yacht chef to a sheik from Oman, and later, yacht chef to a NY businessman.
These experiences inspired him to continue cooking exclusively for private individuals and he now boasts a list of faithful clients that include couturier Lanvin, jeweler Chopard, Italian playboy/actor Gargia, and Russian oil baron Arkmadov.
However, Chef Sofonea has never been motivated by money. "Respect, humanism, and generosity should be the goal for all of us," he says. He donates a portion of his monthly income to an organ donation foundation and assists other chefs in starting their own businesses. He has enjoyed his association with PCI’s London branch and believes, "If everybody in this world does a little for another, this world will be better."
It’s that generosity of spirit, combined with talent, dedication and experience that makes Chef Emmanuel Sofonea an exceptional private chef. "

Le Gastrozone - French Entrée | MAR 05

Restaurant of the Month.

FrenchEntrée reader, Katie Lancaster, and her French partner, Gerome, had a very memorable evening, when they tried out personal chef, Emmanuel Sofonéa. The couple, who live on the Côte d’Azur, eat out frequently, but found the meal that Emmanuel cooked for them, in their own home, was absolutely outstanding. Here is Katie’s review:

Restaurant: Un Chef Chez Vous. Not a restaurant; a personal chef.
Location: Katie and Gerome’s house.
Type: Gourmet
Opening hours: Emmanuel is available for lunch and dinner, 7 days a week.
Prices: €38 per person, upwards.

Review: Emmanuel Sofonéa, our personal chef for the evening, arrived at 5pm, so that he had time to prepare and we could eat at 7:30. We had exchanged emails about the menu for the evening, but otherwise we had no idea what to expect; we hadn’t even had a friend cook for us in our own home. Immaculately dressed in his starched white chef’s outfit, Emmanuel came equipped with his own incredible selection of knives, and his own plates - he is familiar with the presentation of food on his plates. Apart from his knives and the crockery, he would be using our equipment.

I showed him through to the kitchen, where he had a look around, and immediately asked for all the things he needed, which he couldn’t see. Then he quietly got on with preparing the meal. Emmanuel was very pleasant throughout the evening, but he kept himself to himself until the meal was about ready, when we all relaxed and chatted more.

We had opted to go with the Chef’s expert wine selection, but he still made sure we were happy with his choice, before pouring out the first glass, for Gerome to approve. It was a delightful white Côtes de Provence, Roseline 2004, and Emmanuel kept our glasses topped up throughout the meal.

The inspiring menus of Un Chef Chez Vous are in three tiers; €38, €45 and €60 per person, and we had finally decided on a starter and main course from the €35 options, and a dessert from the €60 menu. Emmanuel stresses that he is flexible, and will design a menu with customers and make price adjustments accordingly.

Our chef elegantly served our beautifully presented starters, which were ‘Croustillant de gambas, salade mesclun, huile aux 5 poivres’ (Crisped giant prawns, and mesclun salad with five pepper oil). We were delighted with our first course, which was imaginative, delicate and delicious. We got plenty of juicy prawns, in delicate twists of crispy filo pastry. The prawns surrounded the leaves and herbs, and the aromatic oil went perfectly. Emmanuel left us to enjoy our starters at leisure.

The main course was superb; ‘Dos de saumon pôelé aux  légumes beurre de betterave’ (Fillet of salmon with young vegetables and beetroot butter). This was really artistically presented but very edible at the same time, and the salmon fillets were far from stingey in size. The flavours were tasty and really wonderful together, and the special vegetables were a treat.

We had decided that we couldn’t manage a cheese course, but when Emmanuel asked if we could eat dessert, we nodded enthusiastically, saying “Oh, yes!”. We were not disappointed. This was the nicest dessert I think I have ever had: ‘Tarte tatin à la mangue confite parfum de cannelle, glace chocolat’ (Tarte tatin of mango, poached with cinnamon, and served with chocolate ice-cream). The tart was warm, with wafer-thin filo pastry holding fabulous confited mangos, and was topped with an incredibly luxurious dark-chocolate ice-cream, which melted and mingled with the rest of the dish. A home-made caramel sauce was drizzled over the top, and a sculpted piece of kiwi and sprig of mint were placed at the side, for a bit of freshness. It was really wonderful, and it was a perfect balance of warm, cold, colour, textures and flavours.

We complimented Emmanuel throughout the meal, because it really was amazing. Gerome had been to several of Cannes' top restaurants for conferences, earlier in the week. These meals had cost around €80 a head, but were not as memorable as the one made and served by Emmanuel.

The whole experience of having ‘un chef chez nous’ was fantastic. Emmanuel’s discretion and impeccable service were crucial, and he really had thought of everything. Details like the fact that he never picks at the food he is preparing (Gerome asked how he resisted!), and the carefully-chosen bread which he provided really made a difference. What really took our breath away, was when we finished our relaxed dessert and turned around; we realised that Emmanuel had been silently clearing up the kitchen! The kitchen was clean before he arrived, but he had made it absolutely immaculate! He had even folded-up the tea-towels, and put them in a neat pile in the corner. It was then that we noted how quiet and clatter-free our chef had been all evening.

When the time felt right, Emmanuel said good-bye, and left us to relax with the rest of our wine. We hadn’t known what this evening would be like, but all in all we were thoroughly impressed. Neither of us had eaten anything quite like Emmanuel’s food before, and we would definitely pay for this real luxury again. I will be recommending Un Chef Chez Vous to everyone I know!

interview

Chefs are employed to cook gourmet meals in French homes.
Employing a Chef to cook all your meals is traditionally the preserve of royalty and the super-rich. But now a phenomenon imported from the US is changing the culinary habits of France. Instead of going out to dinner, the French are increasingly likely to employ a chef for the evening, entertaining friends or business colleagues in the comfort of their own home.

I caught up with Emmanuel Sofonéa, a private chef who is reviewed in this month’s ‘Restaurant of the Month’, to ask him how and why he started his company ‘Un Chef Chez Vous’. After a vast amount of cheffing experience, 10 years of working all over the world, 2 years fo cheffing on yachts, and numerous major awards for his culinary skills, Emmanuel decided to settle in his own country, and do what he does best - cook. He didn’t want to work for anyone else, or have the restrictions of a restaurant to run, so he developed a way of working which he had encountered in the Sates, and ‘Un Chef Chez Vous’ was born...

When did you first start cooking? “When I was 15. I grew up in Lyon, where I would help out in local restaurants during weekends and holidays. I knew I didn’t want to stay at school, but it was quite by chance that I got this kitchen job and realised that that was where my future lay. I subsequently graduated from the chef’s school in Lyon. I now have 26 years experience in professional cooking, and 5 years as a personal chef.”

(Not bad for a 42 year old!)

Why did you decide to cook for customers in their homes? “I was no longer happy to work in a restaurant, because of the stress, and because you never get to see your customers. Although I wear a chef’s uniform to cook, and make meals to a very high standard, it is a much more relaxed and friendly way of doing things than a restaurant, where a chef’s attention is on too many things at once, and the food can suffer. I had seen private chefs starting to appear when I worked in Chicago, in 1990, and always liked the idea.”

Emmanuel works alone, but manages to find the time to choose all of his ingredients himself. He emphasises the importance of quality ingredients in creating a gourmet dish, and enjoys making his selections from the colourful local markets. He has settled in Antibes, on the glamourous Côte d’Azur, where there is always plenty of fresh, local produce to choose from, and a wealth of customers wanting some luxury.

All the ingredients are bought fresh on the day that a meal is served. My mouth waters reading his inspiring menu, which sounds so fresh. I think I’d go for ‘sea bream carpaccio with fresh herbs, followed by Ostrich tournedos with curry and roasted carrots scented with vanilla. Then, after cheese, I’d like the mango tarte tatin, poached in cinnamon, and served with chocolate sorbet. Emmanuel also provides the puff pastry nibbles to go with aperitifs, and a different bread tailored to each course.

Why do people choose you over restaurants? “It depends. A friendly atmosphere, people can enjoy themselves and relax with their guests, but also sometimes because they like to say, “Tonight we have a Chef”!
Business entertaining with a personal chef is also becoming more popular. This approach is used a lot in the USA.
Also, people can pay individually for their meal, so it’s a good way for friends to meet more often at each other’s houses, for a gourmet meal, without the worry of who is going to pay.”