The Staff of Life and Substance of Rebirth

Art Culinaire, Fall, 2001

At 40-something years old, he is one of the most inspired visionaries of his generation. In addition to an adept hand, he has the culinary mind of an Einstein, often contemplating the specifics of a dish right down to the root, soil, and feed of each ingredient. For years, young cooks have weathered his exacting techniques in the kitchen to rise above their professional peers. In return, they flourished. After nine years Boulcy closed his doors in 1996, sending his proteges on their way and into their own spotlight the likes of which include: Rocco PiSpirito of Union Pacific in New York, Craig Shelton of The Ryland Inn, Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin, and Eric Blauberg of '21' Club; the list goes on.

Fond of cooking as a young boy, his childhood in New York afforded him the opportunity to dine in and become well accustomed to the Manhattan restaurant scene.

Unlike most pastry chefs, Florian Bellanger learned his patisserie style from the hot line. Perhaps this sounds a little alarming to some, but his expertise in the area of high-end patisserie is filled with wisdom, "1 think in pastry, we have plenty to learn from cooks. They have a spontaneous way of making dishes and many of their products are cooked a la minute; they have to expose their talent all night long," he confides. "It amazed me when I first started working in restaurants. I observed them and tried do things their way, that's how I came up with the ideas I have today." He points out that in boutique pastry shops, there are many pre-made, frozen preparations. To change this, Bellanger's base preparations and mise en place are well organized for service, allowing him to operate the pastry station, like a hot line. "Many components are made a la minute, or 10 minutes before," Bellanger explains. "Brown butter sauce, rum caramel sauce, and cremes, can be really wonderful that way. You lose something-- you lose flavor and texture, when you make it ahead of time." Though a source of curiosity for Bellanger he has no plans to abandon his post for the hot line, "It's too hot I don't like to sweat," Bellanger laughs.

The hot line may have inspired him, but pastries have preoccupied Bellanger since the age of 10 when he took to baking after school. By the age of 16 Bellanger attended L'Ecole de Paris des Metier de la Table, graduating with a specialty in pastry The following year he attended the school's inaugural chocolate and ice cream program, the first of its kind in France. After his obligatory military service in French Guyana he returned to France to start his career at La Maison du Chocolat, a renowned chocolate shop in Paris. He cherished his three year stint, reflecting on their highly protected recipes and techniques. "When I went to work at La Maison du Chocolat, it was as if I had never made chocolate before; it was a revelation for me," he confides. It also grabbed the attention of pastry guru Pierre Herme, who was just beginning to receive recognition for his innovative pastry work at the chic Parisian gourmet store, Fauchon. It was the first time. Bellanger was exposed to the creative side of patisserie. A fter several years he was named Executive Pastry Chef of the Fauchon outlet in Qatar, a tiny country in the Persian Gulf, where he remained for three years. Bellanger knew, in order to grow he would have to leave the Fauchon family. After traveling and working for some of the most noted palates in the world, Bellanger was recruited by the Le Bernardin team in 1996 and couldn't pass up the opportunity to live and work in New York City.