When in Paris, you might eat at one of the world’s most talked-about tables—Plénitude, which nabbed three Michelin stars straight out of the gate—or sit before one of Europe’s greatest sushi chefs at Hakuba. You might also drop in at Cova, a Milanese institution transplanted to the Seine; feast at Chez L’Ami Louis, the exorbitantly expensive bistro favored by deep-pocketed tourists; or dine at branded restaurants helmed by culinary royalty: Monsieur Dior by Yannick Alléno, and LV Dream, by pastry master Maxime Frédéric. Perhaps you would not even notice that all of these restaurants happen to be owned by LVMH. And, conveniently, they all sit within walking distance of the offices of Bernard Arnault, the group’s owner and C.E.O.
How did a conglomerate, better known for Vuitton bags and Krug, become Paris’s most exciting restaurant force in just over five years? AIR MAIL spoke with LVMH’s notoriously discreet head of hospitality, Olivier Lefebvre, along with some of the most plugged-in, independent voices in Parisian fine dining: Jacques Genin, the godfather of the city’s chocolates and pastries, and Dominique Minchelli, whose seafood institution, Le Duc, has seduced the town’s elite since 1967.
