Yves Camdeborde
“I believe that a chef should cook a carrot, sardine or pig’s trotter with the same respect and to the same standard as caviar, turbot or a fillet of beef. They must select their products and ingredients with the greatest of care because, whatever the price, they must be of the highest quality.”
Yves Camdeborde in 7 dates
A tireless flavour explorer and game-changer, for nearly thirty years Yves Camdeborde has continuously shared his love of cooking and passion for fine produce with his loyal customers, readers, listeners and viewers.
1964 A childhood in Béarn
On 7th December in Pau, Jean, a Béarnais charcutier through and through, and his wife Germaine, originally from Morbihan, had a son Yves. Alongside his two brothers Jean-Marc and Philippe, he grew up in a very happy home, enjoying rugby and school, family feasts in Navarrenx and memorable post-match celebrations.
1982 A revelation with Christian Constant
At the final of France’s Best Apprentice Competition in Paris, the young cook was noticed by a chef from the Ritz Hotel, who offered him a position of commis the following year. It was sous-chef Christian Constant who taught him everything, very quickly becoming his mentor.
1988 Happy days at Le Crillon
After a stint at Maxim’s, Le Relais Louis XIII, La Marée and La Tour d’Argent, the young man from Pau returned to work with Christian Constant, now Head Chef at Le Crillon. Four euphoric years followed, “years of freedom and intense creativity where anything was possible.”
1992 La Régalade: a food revolution
On 21st August, the young chef decided to stand on his own two feet and opened La Régalade, a stone’s throw from Porte d’Orléans in Paris. It was a small local bistro where everyone came to enjoy fantastic food, inspiring an entire generation of young chefs.
2004 Renaissance in Saint-Germain-des-Prés
In February, after twelve years at the helm of La Régalade, the chef moved to the very heart of Saint-Germain-des-Prés to open the Hôtel Le Relais Saint-Germain and the restaurant, Le Comptoir du Relais Saint-Germain.
2010 The adventure of the Avants-Comptoirs
Between 2010 and 2016, Yves Camdeborde opened three Avants-Comptoirs (La Terre, La Mer and Le Marché) where his brasserie customers could wait their turn for a table, sharing a light bite and a drink.
2019 The man and the media
The author of a dozen books and graphic novels published since 2003, over the years Yves Camdeborde has become the media’s blue-eyed boy. On television between 2010 and 2015 as a member of the Masterchef jury on TF1 and then since 2018 on France 2 with the programme “A table! Mangez sain, depensez moins” presented by Faustine Bollaert, now on the radio. Faithfully pursuing his vocation to share his passion for cooking to the greatest number, every Saturday Yves Camdeborde gives advice and tips in his radio programme “La table des bons vivants” presented by Laurent Mariotte on Europe 1.