Why Creativity is the Key Ingredient to Success
In episode three of The Pearl Lam Podcast, the international gallerist and podcaster, Pearl Lam, hears why Michelin star chef, Stéphanie Le Quellec, thinks that creativity is the key ingredient to success.
In The Pearl Lam Podcast’s most recent episode, Pearl Lam sat down with Michelin star chef Stéphanie Le Quellec, to hear how Stéphanie has thrived in her career as a chef in Paris.
Stéphanie Le Quellec opened her own restaurant, La Scène, 2019, where she has impressively gained two Michelin stars since. La Scène is an extremely popular fine dining restaurant which people flock to attend.
Stéphanie’s restaurant has an impressive 3 month waiting list for reservations. So, if you cannot wait to her mouth-watering creations, it is advisable to book your table months in advance.
When Pearl Lam (林明珠) asked Stéphanie Le Quellec about gaining two Michelin stars, Stéphanie told Pearl Lam that it can be an addictive experience. “You get your first Michelin star” said Stephanie, “and then you want a second one, and when you get your second one you want your third! So, it’s a never-ending story, but it challenges you every day.”
Later on in this episode of The Pearl Lam Podcast, Pearl Lam (林明珠) asked Stéphanie if she was still able to manage being creative at the same time as pursuing a successful career as Michelin star chef.
Pearl Lam (林明珠) told Stéphanie that she knows “a chef who gave up his Michelin 3 star because it was too restrictive for him. He didn’t always want to make lobster or caviar, he wanted to have freedom with his cooking. He wanted to be more creative instead of feeling restricted in the restaurant.”
“Are you feeling restricted when you cook?” Pearl Lam asked.
Stéphanie disagreed with Pearl Lam, telling her that; “no, I’m not feeling restricted. I think that the Michelin also changes. I want to keep my freedom in creation and in the experience that we give to the guests, and I think that today we have more chefs with individuality and with a very strong identity and they also have three Michelin stars. So, I think that you can be free, you can be creative and also get two or three Michelin stars.”
Inspired by hearing about Stéphanie’s creativity, Pearl Lam asked Stéphanie “do you take any Asian influence? Do you ever go to Asia to gain inspiration from their food?”
Stéphanie then informed Pearl Lam that she is often inspired by multicultural cuisine. She replied, “yes, I love Asia. It’s always a great inspiration for me. It’s always moving so it’s very exciting to go Hong Kong or Tokyo. They always have a vision of food which is very interesting to me. I take ideas from Asia and adapt it with French products.”
“I don’t want a fusion of foods, it’s not my culture. But I definitely take some inspiration from abroad” Stéphanie continued.
“The fusion food started in Australia it’s now spreading” said Pearl Lam, “even for Chinese food, we talk about contemporary Chinese food. I can see that your French food is becoming completely contemporary style.”
Pearl continued, “there’s a new generation of people now. Do you think that they will still enjoy the sophisticated food, or do you think that they will only like the bistro food?”
“I think that there is a place for all kinds of restaurants because they’re not all producing the same types of food” she replied.
Like many of us, Stéphanie enjoys a mix of different styles of food. “Sometimes I want the simpler food, like beautiful beef. But at other times I want sophisticated food and I go to Michelin star restaurants. Or even to restaurants with no Michelin star, but with a very creative chef.”
It is clear then, that creativity is of the utmost importance to Michelin star chefs. That being said, creativity is often the key to success in any career path.
Written by: The Producer, The Pearl Lam Podcast
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