Modern fine dining has produced an endless stream of acclaimed chefs who strive to achieve the ultimate recognition of their skills, knowledge, and dedication to their craft: a coveted star awarded by the critics at the Michelin Guide. But in an age dominated by social media, even some of the most acclaimed chefs, such as the likes of Gordon Ramsey, might appear more occupied with remaining culturally relevant rather than continuing the pursuit of culinary excellence.
Perhaps, one might argue, in our rapidly evolving world, Michelin and its prestigious reputation no longer matter as much to modern diners. Ramsey has accumulated 17 stars no less over the course of his career, but now only holds 7, including the same 3 since 2001 at his flagship property, restaurant Gordon Ramsay. However, his appeal and visits to his restaurants have only increased over the course of this decade, buoyed by his unmatchable presence on social media platforms like TikTok, comfortably making him the most popular chef in the world.
Nonetheless, Michelin and its prized guidebook still hold sway over many diners looking to try only the very best of the world’s gastronomic institutions. At present, the maestro who holds the unimpeachable honour of collecting the most Michelin Stars in their portfolio is none other than Alain Ducasse. A titan in the world of fine dining for the last 50 years, he has an almost unmatchable reputation for delivering extraordinary food.
A Brief Tribute to The Record Holder
No discussion of Michelin supremacy can omit Joël Robuchon, whose name remains etched in culinary history with an unmatched 31 Michelin stars. Known for his genius in transforming the simplest of dishes into the most elegant of meals, Robuchon elevated not only French cuisine, but global dining as a whole, and boasts an array of famous recipes to his name that no living chef can match. His empire spanned Paris, Tokyo, Macau, Las Vegas and beyond, with each restaurant setting a benchmark and emulating the late chef’s passion and dedication to the culinary arts.
Robuchon passed away in 2018, leaving behind not only a portfolio of some of the world’s most critically acclaimed restaurants but also a generation of chefs shaped by his methods. His influence endures in kitchens around the world, including those of Ducasse, who, alongside many of his peers, has frequently acknowledged the standards Robuchon set for modern fine dining. In Michelin terms, Robuchon remains the undisputed peak of fine dining, but let us not drift too far from the incredible career of Ducasse any further.
From Farmhouse to Fine Dining
Alain Ducasse was born in 1956 on a farm in Castel-Sarrazin, a small village in France’s Landes region, surrounded by rural life amongst the many farms and fields of the area. From an early age, he developed an awareness of how food was tied to the land, be that freshly picked vegetables from the family garden, poultry raised on the property, or the rustic flavours of autumn and winter from both root and branch.
At sixteen, Ducasse enrolled at a hotel school in nearby Bordeaux, and by his late teens, he had secured apprenticeships under some of France’s most exacting culinary masters, including Michel Guérard, the father of cuisine minceur, and Gaston Lenôtre, a renowned craftsman of beautiful pastries. These formative years immersed Ducasse in the French nouvelle cuisine movement, where precision and freshness began to replace the heavy sauces and ornate platters of the Golden Age of French cuisine.
By the age of twenty-four, Ducasse was already head chef at La Terrasse in Juan-les-Pins, earning his first Michelin star. His career accelerated rapidly, marked by both triumph and resilience. In 1984, he famously survived a plane crash in the French Alps, an event that left him with serious injuries but strengthened his resolve to push boundaries and embrace life’s challenges in the wake of suffering severe impediments to his movement and ability to cook. Two years later, at Le Louis XV in Monaco, he became the first chef to win three Michelin stars in a hotel restaurant, achieving this feat in just thirty-three months as a professional chef and cementing his status as one of France’s new masters of the culinary arts.
Across The Ducasseverse
Today, Ducasse holds 21 Michelin stars, the highest number awarded to any currently living chef. His career inevitably invites comparison to that of Joël Robuchon, but Ducasse’s prestige and acclaim set him apart from almost every other living chef in a way that may one day eclipse Robuchon entirely. Boasting a portfolio that spans four continents, Ducasse embraces influences and techniques from around the globe and infuses these into his enviable collection of premises that other chefs silently covet as their own.
In Europe, the crown jewels of the empire remain Le Louis XV in Monaco and Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester in London, which has retained its three stars since 2010. Paris offers uninhibited glamour at Le Meurice, a two-star Michelin that blends classic Parisian grandeur with a staunch commitment to sustainability, earning accolades from environmental certifiers such as Écotable for its dedicated approach.
Beyond Europe, Ducasse’s influence is deeply felt across Asia and the Middle East. In Tokyo, restaurants like Beige, Esterre, and Benoit and Muni in Kyoto reinterpret French classics through a Japanese lens, pushing the boundaries between the chef’s native cuisine and Japan’s. In Bangkok, Blue by Alain Ducasse has held a Michelin star for four consecutive years and continues to evolve with an attached bakery boutique and seasonal tasting menus that serve as a bridge between French cuisine’s colonial heritage and the modern dining experience in Southeast Asian countries.
Among Ducasse’s holdings in the Middle East, Idam in Doha holds the glorious distinction of being the first restaurant in Qatar to receive a Michelin star, pairing contemporary French cooking with Arabic influences in a Philippe Starck-designed dining room overlooking the Museum of Islamic Art. Despite the glitz and glamour of the locations these restaurants are found in, Ducasse meticulously pours over every new property before electing to attach his name to a proposed restaurant. Gordon Ramsay once commented on the French chef’s supposed frugality, but it stands as a testament to Ducasse’s talents not just as a chef, but as a restaurateur, that he has managed to build such an enviable collection of properties around the world.
Measured yet bold, innovative but also a staunch lover of traditional dishes, Ducasse has created a legacy that will span much further than the five decades he has spent cooking. His status as Michelin’s most decorated living chef belies a reputation that has been built on controlling every single element – from plate to table, kitchen to front of house – refusing to compromise on anything less than perfection.
