Chefs au Sommet d'Auron, Peaks of Culinary Emotions

Inauguration des Chefs au Sommet d’Auron ©Cook&Shoot – Aline Girard

The 6th edition of the Chefs au Sommet d’Auron, coinciding with the 80th anniversary of the station, celebrated high gastronomy in the snow of the Mercantour.

Chefs au Sommet d’Auron offered from 14 to 20 January, 2017 summits of tastes, mountains of flavors and peaks of culinary emotions in the heart of the emblematic ski resort in the Mercantour. For six years now, the Festival de la Gastronomie de Montagne has been animated by a team of talented chefs and pastry chefs from the Côte d’Azur who share a moment of authentic culinary delights and conviviality with tourists and the inhabitants of Haute Tinée.

chefs au sommet auron 2017 la table du chalet

Auron au cœur des Montagnes du Mercantour

A cure of good tastes, snow and sun

The original recipe of the festival Les Chefs au Sommet d’Auron: take a skewer of famous chefs, season with the unique flavors of the products of our mountains, add a touch of madness with Les Toques Brûlées, a touch of pleasure with cooking and pastry workshops for adults and children, and spice up with a big ladle of relaxation, good mood and well-being. Finally, sprinkle with snowflakes and simmer for five days in the sun of the Mediterranean Alps peaks.

Autour de Jacques Maximin, Arnaud Tabarec et Phippe Johannes ©Cook&Shoot – Aline Girard

A link between the sea and the mountains

Decorated with the sumptuous summits of the Mercantour, Les Chefs au Sommet d’Auron celebrated High Gastronomy through events of sharing and culinary happiness. Under the patronage of the famous chef Jacques Maximin, Meilleur Ouvrier de France, Les Chefs au Sommet d’Auron proposed during five days an amateur cooking contest on the theme of “La Cuisine Stéphanoise Revisited”, culinary demonstrations, playful workshops and gourmand 5 to 7 around the skating rink accompanied by delicious demonstrations of pastry organized by the Alpes-Maritimes Union of Artisans Pâtissiers-Chocolatiers.

©Cook&Shoot – Aline Girard

Gastronomic evenings to enjoy without moderation

Every evening, the restaurants in the resort of Auron, Saint Dalmas-le-Selvage and Saint Etienne de Tinée hosted in their kitchens talented chefs and pastry chefs from the region, who concocted sumptuous gourmet dinners at the unique – and incredible – price of 45 euros per person. These exceptional dinners are enjoyed by the fireplace, in the relaxed and warm atmosphere of the dining rooms decorated with woodwork of the mountain restaurants. The gourmet menus, composed of amuse-bouche, starter, main dish and dessert, have delighted both the pupils and the taste buds. The gourmets have enjoyed a very wide range of French culinary art with the products from Mercantour sublimated and honored by a spotlight on the cuisine of Haute Tinée and its old recipes revisited.

Brochette de chefs avec Jacques Maximin

Great names on the tracks

Some names of chefs participating in the festival Chefs au Sommet d’Auron: Jean-François Issautier, Jacques Rolancy, David Faure et Les membres des Toques Brûlées, Hervé Busson, Jean-Claude Brugel, Thomas Millo, Thomas Hubert, Antoine Leroyer, Dominique Charles, Yannick Prunier, Christophe Billau, Arnaud Tabarec, Radouane Mansouri, Geoffrey Poesson, Frédéric Galland, Luc Gamel, Yves Terrillon, Didier Chouteau, Basile Arnaud, Leila Mouhamou, Guillaume Anor, Emmanuel Lehrer, Dimonique Nouvian, Julien Perrier, Stephan Paroche, Yorik Tieche…
Les chefs pâtissiers de renom: Christian Cottard, Pascal Picasse, Pascal Lac, Bruno Laffargue, Stéphane Mangin, Jean-François Barberis, Julien Beaulieu, Fabrice Didier, Yohan Gouverneur, Michael Durieux, Jean-Michel Llorca, Laura Smith…

Chefs au sommet de leur art ©Cook&Shoot – Aline Girard

A glimpse of the sumptuous dinners of the chefs

Flavors “Festival” at La Table du Chalet d’Auron with chef Antoine Leroyer in duo with pastry chef Michael Durieux, both from Majestic Barrière Cannes.
Very authentic flavors at L’Alisier with chef Yves Terrillon from La Cuisine des Fleurs in Antibes.
Flavors from the terroir at restaurant Les Pivottes at Hotel L’Ecureuil with the chef Arnaud Basile from Hotel de Mougins in duet with pastry chef Bruno Laffargue from Mic Mac Macaron in Cagnes sur Mer.

Les Toques brûlées autour de David Faure, Jacques Maximin et Michel Guillot ©Cook&Shoot – Aline Girard

Torrid Cooking Show by Toques Brûlées

On Sunday 15, the skiers gastronomes enjoyed a cooking show live on the tracks with a tasting of gastronomic “grillades”, made at a giant barbecue hosted by the chefs of Les Toques Brûlées, led by the lively David Faure. The high-energy chefs ignited the snow front, grilling gastronomic recipes washed down with Rosé de Provence, and, between two mouthfuls, the most sporting of them went down the slopes.

Yves Terrillon explique ses succulents Bonbons de Foie Gras à la Violette

Culinary demonstrations

For five days, the resort has experienced gastronomic summits, as well as initiations in oenology, dietetics, culinary demonstrations and children workshops by chefs and pastry chefs present at the dinners. Without forgetting skiing for all, but especially for the Chefs, for whom the Festival of Gastronomy of Mountain is the genuine opportunity to manipulate the spatulas, but on snow this time.

Les officiels autour de Jacques Maximin, Colette Fabron, Maire d’Auron, Dominique Fantino des Étoiles de Mougins et Michel Guillot ©Cook&Shoot – Aline Girard

Passionate with gastronomy

The Festival of Mountain Gastronomy was born from the initiative of members passionate with gastronomy from the association of the Traders in Auron and Saint Etienne de Tinée, who, having established ties of friendship with many starred chefs in the region, created the festival in February 2012.
The gastronomic event Les Chefs au Sommet d’Auron is organized by the Association of Traders and Craftsmen of Auron and Saint Etienne de Tinée with the support of the Commune of Saint Etienne de Tinée, the Tourist Office, the SEM des Cimes du Mercantour and the Chambre des Métiers des Alpes-Maritimes et des Artisans Arts et Délices.

Like all large event, the Festival benefits from the support of many partners. This year, Les Étoiles de Mougins, the famous International Festival of Gastronomy in Mougins, brought its ray of sunshine to the event. Many culinary partners also supported the success of Les Chefs au Sommet d’Auron.