In conjunction with partner Ducasse Développement, Sommet Education is creating the new École Ducasse – Paris Campus, an emblematic venue dedicated to teaching culinary and pastry arts. An ultra-contemporary campus focused on culinary excellence, on transmission and on the promotion of a world-renowned gastronomic know-how.
École Ducasse – Paris Campus is a unique 5,000 sqm space dedicated to taste, located in Meudon-la-Forêt, 10km from the heart of Paris. Both the school building as well as its interior and exterior fittings were custom-designed by international agency Arte Charpentier Architectes (Oxygen Tower in Lyon, Shanghai Opera House, Véolia Environment Campus…), along with landlord Covivio. The interior design of the bar and the initiation restaurant was entrusted to Jouin Manku, an agency whose previous projects include the restaurant Alain Ducasse at the Plaza Athénée.
The site includes nine laboratories dedicated to culinary arts as well as to pastrymaking, baking, chocolate and ice cream; seven classrooms for academic courses (Finance, Marketing, Human Resources, etc.); a sensory analysis room dedicated to food and wine pairings and the discovery of new flavors; a knowledge center; as well as several coworking areas. The kitchens will benefit from the fruit trees surrounding the school and aromatic plants grown in the vegetable garden. The campus also has a store with a take-away sales area and an initiation restaurant open to the public.
This all amounts to a high-quality environment and experiential territory in which everything is done to facilitate work and develop gustatory sensations
As Chef Alain Ducasse emphasises, “With the opening of the Paris Campus, we are pursuing an essential mission that I believe is one of the most beautiful in the world: preparing the next generation and training leaders. This mission consists of transmitting excellence, respect for produce and seasonality, as well as the ability to recover from difficult contexts, all driven by a strong focus on perpetual reinvention.”
“Chef Alain Ducasse’s philosophy infuses our educational vision and the way we approach culinary and pastry transmission on a daily basis. Our primary objective is to train extremely well-rounded chefs with a very contemporary culinary vision, unique expertise and interpersonal skills, combined with outstanding technical know-how and a strong entrepreneurial culture” explains Elise Masurel, Managing Director, École Ducasse.
