The Taste of France

Corsican hospitality can only be fully experienced by those who can discover the local terroir and specialties. Two foreign chefs can attest of this: English chef Simon Andrews in Ajaccio and Italian chef Fabio Bragagnolo in Porto Vecchio. While the two managed to retain an Italian or English touch in their cuisine, they have also highlighted the island's culinary wealth and its unrivaled flavors.

These cooks turned restaurateurs were behind many of this region's most traditional, generous and gourmet recipes. Today, Lyon is experiencing a different culinary revolution with a new generation of chefs moving into this rich terroir to celebrate and reinvent Lyonnais cuisine. Among them, Tabata Mey, a Brazilian trained by Paul Bocuse, and Swedish chef Connie Zagora.

In Castres and Albi, the two chefs showcase the diversity and quality of Occitan products. Whether cooking wood pigeon, asparagus or foie-gras, these foreign chefs help discerning diners to rediscover the products of the region. Each has his own style: bistro-gastronomy for the Swede, and more elaborate creations for the Englishman, who loves the flowers and plants of the nearby Montagnes Noires.

In Marseille, Scotsman Malcolm Gardner opened one of the best restaurants in the city that serves Mediterranean fish paired with a delicious Cassis wine. In Menton, Argentinean chef Mauro Colagreco just won his Michelin third star. We discover how he prepares a carpaccio of gamberone seasoned by yuzu-flavored olive oil, and how he revisits a Provencal classic: bouillabaisse.

German chef Fabian Feldman and Australian chef Luke Dolphin have earned the trust of the local producers and receive their best produce that will be rightly showcased in their restaurants. The Basque terroir is full of tasty products: the Kriaxera duck, Banka trout, Kintoa pork, red corn, sheep cheese Ossau-Iraty, fresh fish from St Jean-de-Luz harbor and cepe mushrooms.