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23 Jan 2018

DS AUTOMOBILES AND YANNICK ALLÉNO TEAM UP IN THE REBIRTH OF THE PAVILLON LEDOYEN IN PARIS

A few months ago, Yannick Alléno offered a challenge to the design teams at DS Automobiles – create the new kitchens at the Pavillon Ledoyen. Tradition and innovation, French excellence and savoir-faire, and cutting- edge creativity are ingredients valued by both the carmaker and the chef that will be relied on to carry out this bold and exceptional project – one that came out of an encounter in 2015 between Yannick Alléno and teams at DS Automobiles. Since then, relations between the DS brand and the internationally acclaimed chef, an ambassador of French gastronomy and art de vivre, have grown stronger and broadened. So next spring, come round and discover the Pavillon Ledoyen’s new kitchens. They will be unveiled with the completion of the remarkable renovations at this celebrated address for fine French cuisine since 1792.

DS AUTOMOBILES AND YANNICK ALLÉNO TEAM UP IN THE REBIRTH OF THE PAVILLON LEDOYEN IN PARIS

Next spring, Yannick Alléno and DS Automobiles will unveil the Pavillon Ledoyen’s “new-look” kitchens created by the DS brand’s design team. It will be an important moment, as it will mark the completion of the interior renovations at this Paris institution, enabling Yannick Alléno to bring a fresh, contemporary spirit to the overall experience at his three-star restaurant and to the fine cuisine his guests will enjoy there.

YANNICK ALLÉNO AND THE REBIRTH OF THE PAVILLON LEDOYEN

Since his arrival on 1 July 2014 and the 15-year extension of the operating concession by the City of Paris on 1 January 2016, Yannick Alléno has been working to bring about the rebirth of the Pavillon Ledoyen.

After remodelling the public areas in 2016, including the installation of a monumental contemporary artwork by Olivier Masmonteil in 2017, the Pavillon Ledoyen’s staff has been doing some remarkable renovation work in the kitchens of the restaurant.

To restore their original splendor to the behind-the-scenes areas of the restaurant, which celebrated its 225th anniversary last year, and turn its kitchens into an exceptional “machine” unlike any other, Yannick Alléno called on the talented designers of DS Automobiles to provide an avant-garde design concept that would blend refinement with technology.

“The Pavillon Ledoyen is a Parisian wonder, unique, inspiring, and totally infused with its natural surroundings. For over three years, we have all been driven by the constant desire to breathe fresh life into this historic building in the gardens of the Champs-Elysées. Soon the aims of this grand plan will be clear”, says Yannick Alléno.

He adds: “The work accomplished by the people around me – at DS Automobiles, imagining a brand new kitchen, opening onto the exterior, with state-of-the-art technologies and ergonomics, and here at the restaurant, people working on the kitchen, the dining room, and the offices to define a completely original, distinctive, and modern identity – has been a huge task. The impetus has come from our desire to offer our customers a unique universe, a modern and intense dining experience à la française with a connection to nature.”

THE NEW KITCHENS OF THE PAVILLON LEDOYEN, SIGNED DS

Being asked to design the kitchens for one of France’s finest restaurants located in the heart of Paris was a wholly new experience for the new premium French automobile brand. And that was precisely the challenge that the three-star chef Yannick Alléno gave several months ago to the staff of Thierry Métroz, Design Director at DS Automobiles.

“At DS, we are familiar with challenges, and we like them. They come along every day and are essential to nourish the avant-garde spirit that is part of our identity”, says Métroz. “When Yannick Alléno asked us to work on his project, we were immediately excited. What he wanted us to do appealed to us right away, both because it was exceptional and because we admire this extraordinary individual, with whom we share the same values – creativity, passion, audacity, and a contemporary vision.”

In 2015, Yves Bonnefont’s teams met Yannick Alléno for the first time. It was in the Tuileries Gardens, on a day in May during DS WEEK, when the DS’s 60th anniversary and the DS brand’s launch were being celebrated. Relations between the carmaker and the chef began at that event and grew stronger as time passed until they decided to carry out an ambitious project together at the Pavillon Ledoyen. That project has turned into a concrete expression of a shared vision – a vision that involves displaying the excellence of French savoir-faire, combining the traditional and the contemporary, and having the willingness to dare and the creativity to offer a unique experience to customers.

A few months ago, Yannick Alléno took a short break and went for an exclusive spin behind the wheel of a DS E-TENSE. This unique car, which weds the authenticity of genuine craftsmanship with the creativity brought by innovative digital tools, unites high technology and refinement in a high-performance GT with an electric drivetrain that produces 402 horsepower and 516 Nm of torque.

It has been a unique experience for the DS Design teams as well. After a few more busy weeks, the Pavillon Ledoyen’s new kitchens will be on display in the spring.

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