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Starry Eyes
It could hardly be any faster: in June 2018 the restaurant, Les Jardins d’Anaïs opened in Clausen and just six months later chef Christophe Quentin was awarded a Michelin star. “I had not expected it to be so quick,” Quentin says, smiling. “Getting a star in six months, that’s not bad.” There is no question that the listed walls of this establishment located opposite the Mansfeld park in the Clausen district now house a new, metropolitan, top-rate restaurant.
It was clear for Christophe Quentin that it was his mission to enter the exclusive circle of starred chefs of the Grand Duchy on his arrival in Luxembourg. The owners from the Champagne region, Annabelle Hazard and Pascal Soutiran, have from the very beginning had great ambitions. “It is a challenge that I’m not afraid of, even if you can never be sure that it will work,” says Christophe Quentin. After all, the owners know the industry’s imponderability well – in contrast to investors elsewhere. They are already present in Épernay with the hotel restaurant Les Grains d’Argent.
Christophe Quentin certainly counts as someone who could achieve this major effort with a newly designed place. The man from the French Ardennes managed to get employed in the Parisian Taillevent (which then had 3 stars) directly after finishing his training at the hotel management school in Bazeilles. Following that, his resume reads like an extract from the Michelin guide: Hotel George V, nine years at the side of Alain Ducasse in the Eiffel Tower, and Les Crayères in the Champagne region. Naturally, it was hard work in all of these places, Christophe Quentin says. “You have to really want it. And you learn something new everywhere.”
Unsurprisingly, he cooks to a high standard in Les Jardins d’Anaïs. Quentin calls his cuisine “classic and modern”. He uses produce of great quality. “I work with produce for the sake of the produce,” he explains, “Contrary to many of my colleagues I don’t use a lot of spices. I prefer to concentrate on the ingredient’s own taste.” The menu rates can satisfy many budgets. For lunch, the 3-course business lunch at 49€ is the promise of good value for money. In the evening, the range extends from 79€ for the 5-course Discovery menu to 139€ for the 7-course Exception menu.
“I work with produce for the sake of the produce. I prefer to concentrate on the ingredient’s own taste.”
For Chef Christophe Quentin, the era of high-end gourmet restaurants is not over. Guests still enjoy a gastronomic experience, often to celebrate personal occasions.In the light, friendly and classy-looking dining room, which takes around 35 seats, you will mostly find business people at lunchtime, for dinner it’s private citizens and, of course, guests of the small hotel, which offers seven rooms.
Christophe Quentin has realized, to his own astonishment, that his Luxembourgish guests eat more fish than meat. This is a demand that he can fulfil without problems, since provision of fish in the country works well. The Frenchman, who has made Luxembourg his home (“I’ve really arrived here”), further makes an effort to buy as many agricultural products in Luxembourg as possible, as well as keeping in contact with the relevant gastronomy suppliers here, and he also has a direct line to the Rungis market.
Christophe Quentin is a perfectionist. This year, he looks forward to improving the large terrace behind the house and make it even more beautiful and bring it closer to nature. It will be a proper oasis of peace and tranquillity. Apart from that he has big plans. He has one star now, he says, that is a big responsibility. And then he adds, smiling: “And perhaps there will be another.”
Les Jardins D’anaïs
2 Place Sainte-Cunégonde — L-1367 Luxembourg
Tel. +352 / 28 99 80 00