Chef Talk: A Lunchtime Cooking Class at Atelier Guy Martin

In the context of my investigations into the culinary world of Guy Martin, the chef who presides over the ovens at Paris’s stellar Grand Véfour, I joined a group of Paris-based food bloggers for a lunchtime cooking class at his cooking workshop, the Atelier Guy Martin.

The video below shows various moments during that class under the instruction of the Atelier’s executive chef Antony Courteille and sous-chef Laurent Mosset.

The sound is a bit muddled at times and the chefs may not be comprehensible to some viewers since the class was given in French, nevertheless the instruction was indeed clear and concise, and the 2 hours event (instruction + lunch) flowed smoothly and convivially from tomato to onion to sea bream to chocolate mousse to decorating the plate… and then from an aperitif to the enjoyment of our own cuisine.

Taking part in the cooking class along with me and glimpsed in this video are Fabien Nègre, who organized of the event, and the following Paris-based food bloggers: Wai Ming Lung, Fabrice Ivara, Christophe Wakim, Vanessa Besnard,Salma Essafi, Barbra Austin, Géraldine Ranouil, Isabelle Chane Pane, and Phyllis Flick. The video was filmed and directed by Thibault Perois.

In view of the limited cooking skill of some in the group, beginning with myself, the instruction of this specific lunchtime class was kept rather basic. Classes for more experienced or trained cooks as well as specially tailored classes are also possible, including in English.

At the lunchtime cooking class and at a previous cocktail event I attended, I found the staff of the Atelier to be gracious, friendly, and highly knowledgeable and the atmosphere unpretentious and relaxed, leading me to believe that Atelier Guy Martin is well worth considering for those looking for a cooking class in Paris at any level. Classes are reasonably priced at about 80 euros per two-hour course. There are shorter and longer courses as well, along with classes for children.

Atelier Guy Martin, 35 rue Miromesnil, 8th arrondissement, Paris. Metro Miromesnil. Tel. 01 42 66 33 33. See the schedule of upcoming classes. Tailor-made classes and events are also possible.

© 2010, Gary Lee Kraut