FOOD The gourmet truck “Michel” reopens for two months, and more if you like
Alexandre Mazzia — David Girard
- The three-starred chef Alexandre Mazzia reopens his food-truck Michel this Thursday, in the same street as his restaurant. The authorization granted by the town hall is for one year, so this pop-up, announced as ephemeral, could last.
- François Blanc, author of “Paris Street Food”, explains the score provided by the great chefs in street-food.
Food truck, season three. After confinement, after the opening of the summer last, the starred chef; Alexandre Mazzia reopens this Thursday at; Marseille, its food-truck baptized; “Michel”, in honor of his fishing grandfather. This time in the same street as his famous gourmet restaurant AM, at 17, rue François Rocca. “We succeeded in Having a place there is important for me to have a vision of the truck, to see the influx, to be close to my teams,” appetite.
On the menu, we find, but in seasonal colors, the Croc-Mazz (16 €), Buna-Mazz (13 €) and Hot Mazz (19 €) which attract between 100 and 200 people every day . At the helm, a new team formed in the kitchens of Alexandre Mazzia “to have precision, and to know how we work with the products, which are the same as for the restaurant”. “Without the know-how and the state of mind, it’s never the same thing,” adds the chef, than three Michelin stars and international recognition by the World’ ;s 50 Best Restaurants didn’t hijack of his street-food cravings.
“”It’s not the same profession…”
“It’s not the same job, explains Alexandre Mazzia. It’s a different organization, with heat inertia, issues of moistening the bread to keep it crispy, wrappers… How to best preserve the ingredients, all this is important. Especially since many take & take away and then go to the sea.” It’s also a strong request from the clientele, according to the chef, who receives many calls and emails at the restaurant. this topic.
“Street food, basically, is made up of few elements, a bread, three toppings, a sauce, attention to detail and every component plays” , says François Blanc, culinary journalist and author of Paris Street Food, published in October by Alain Ducasse. “The great chefs will bring nobility to the choice of ingredients, respect for the seasons. It’s also a way to expand their offering by being accessible.”
“The starred chef, whether he makes a sandwich or a plate, he will have this desire to do it in a qualitative way, and to bring a vision, a little twist,” Florent Pietravalle, starred chef from La Mirande, near; Avignon, which, after its food-truck experience during confinement, preferred refocus on the restaurant.
See you at the Olympic Games
Of the 50 Parisian addresses listed by François Blanc, around ten are linked to; famous chefs before doing street-food. “In Paris, Grégory Marchand is the first chef to embark on the restoration to; take away, continues François Blanc. In recent examples, there is Mory Sacko, who opened a dedicated antenna for fried chicken.” Only’” Paris, street-food is mainly consumed in Paris. table, in counter or stall mode. Not to mention the baos, for example, which have integrated many restaurant menus. “”Food trucks have never really caught on, especially in the UK” because of location issues,” says François Blanc.
Not enough to discourage Alexandre Mazzia, who admits to hardly looking at what is being done elsewhere. He stays focused. on his desires, his objective. Announced like a “ephemeral pop-up for two months”, his food-truck Michel could easily lengthen the season: the authorization from the town hall runs, in fact, until ; the end of the year. “I am a worrier, nothing is ever acquired,” confides Alexandre Mazzia, who first wants to see if the gourmets follow. In any case, Michel will be there for the 2024 Olympic Games, in the Olympic village.