Meet Gregory Legros
Pastry Chef
Head pastry chef at The Chedi Muscat, in the Sultanate of Oman, this young French chef takes inspiration for his creations from the local culture and landscape.
- A chef inspired by his travels
- Head pastry chef at The Chedi Muscat, in the Sultanate of Oman, this young French chef takes inspiration for his creations from the local culture and landscape.
Having completed his comprehensive initial chef’s training in France, Gregory Legros, 36, chose to specialise in restaurant patisserie; first at a catering school, then alongside Christian Camprini, winner of the 2004 French craftsmanship award in the 'chocolatier ' category. “He nurtured my interest in this field and showed me the path to follow. From the 'Bastide Saint Antoine' to the ' Chèvre d’Or', two Michelin-starred restaurants in the south of France, he taught me how to perfect my work and to never be satisfied with the end result. They were certainly the hardest professional years of my life, but also the richest.” - A desire to travel the world
- Gregory next put his pastry chef abilities to the test at the 'Zebra Square' in Monaco, then at 'L’Ile Rousse' in Bandol, also in the south of France, before deciding to go abroad. “First I went to Romania, as a consultant for various establishments and teaching at catering schools, then I moved to New Zealand, still as a consultant but this time specialising in patisserie. I worked for 'Sky City', a major hotel complex in Auckland with two hotels and 10 restaurants, with a total capacity of 2000 banqueting guests and 4000 for catered events. I then moved on to Vietnam as executive pastry chef for the opening of the country’s first two 'Intercontinental' hotels, in Hanoi and Saigon”.
- External sales: an excellent idea
- Now working in the Sultanate of Oman at one of the most beautiful hotels in the world, Grégory Legros is responsible for the production and development of patisserie and bakery. “With a team of 7 other pastry chefs and 4 bakers, we work to satisfy our customers in the 5 hotel restaurants, serving tourists, but also more and more frequently businessmen and local residents. Despite the fact that we have no shop front, we have an exterior clientele who only come for our pastries. It is a fast-growing business!” For his products, the young pastry chef works with Elle & Vire whenever he has the opportunity. “This brand has an established reputation throughout the world for offering high quality products and above all consistency, which is fundamental to me.”
- Traditional or adventurous clients?
- Gregory has an original approach to describing his client base. “The 'traditional' client asks a thousand questions about desserts but limits himself to the safe and traditional mille feuille or fondant cake. The 'adventurer' looks for new experiences – he likes surprises and trying new things… The latter type of customer is the kind who likes my latest creation, Wadi Cake. It consists of soft biscuit, with dates, coconut, a goat's cheese mousse and a crumble with Oman spices. It is my tribute to the beautiful canyons of Oman that I like to explore when I have time.”
- Macaroons as a voyage of discovery
- The chef, who describes his pastries as “internationally French”, takes his inspiration from the culture of the country in which he is working, “its cuisine and social traditions, as well as its natural environment, all of which are new in each new place, affect my creative process and help my pursuit of flavour and the pleasure of food. Our macaroons, for example, are a huge success. Of course the recipe is traditional, but they are flavoured with jasmine, mandarin, luban (a type of incense), rosewood, saffron or cardamom, transforming them into a veritable voyage of discovery for the country.”
- Sharing his knowledge
- In the near future, Grégory Legros plans to teach. “I already have some teaching experience, notably in Romania and with students from the KOTO academy in Hong Kong, whom I remember fondly. I really enjoyed those experiences. At the moment there is a training project at the patisserie, in partnership with a catering school here at in Muscat, in which I will participate next September.” In the long term, Grégory sees himself returning to France, ‘to open a bed and breakfast and offer patisserie classes to my customers. I will have to settle down some day, and when that day comes it will be my guests and their stories that will allow me to carry on travelling.”