Where we least expected it

Two-Michelin-starred chef Christophe Roure will be the new boss of Place Kléber, 500 meters as the crow flies from his Neuvième Art (rue Cuvier, in the 6th arrondissement). He succeeds Pierre Orsi , who occupied the premises from September 1975 to April 2023 (and February 2025 for the adjacent brasserie Le Cazenove ). A MOF for a MOF (Orsi won the title of Meilleur Ouvrier de France in 1972, Roure in 2007). It is the Épicure Investissement group that has bought the real estate complex of nearly 1,800 m2 (we are talking about a purchase-work ticket of 19 million euros). This family holding already owns Le Comptoir des Halles, at the Paul-Bocuse halls, a caterer in Roanne, three restaurants in Dijon, four establishments in Sète and two in Toulouse. In these last two cities, two chefs have been awarded one and two Michelin stars. In Lyon, at Place Kléber, there is talk of a “very ambitious” project.

Clearly, Christophe Roure is aiming for the triple in the Red Guide. While the third star has never been an end in itself for the chef (first star in 2004, second star in 2008), the astral grail is still a dream. Especially when you're on the shortlist of seventy-four French double-starred chefs and in Landerneau, Christophe Roure's name always comes out of the pot. Grande Table du Monde since 2016, Christophe Roure's cuisine is less classical than that of Mère Brazier or Maison Bocuse ; it's a cuisine of fairly readable creation, in harmony and balance. Michelin even compared Christophe Roure's cuisine to Mahler's Symphony No. 9 in D major, which is one of the great symphonic scores. But for seventeen years, no third star. The fault lies with his restaurant on Rue Cuvier, which apparently doesn't meet the standards of a three-star hotel, at least for customers who expect a certain level of luxury when they spend several hundred euros on a meal, including valet parking and a hotel room. Both are planned for Place Kléber.