SBM LAUNCHES THE “FESTIVAL DES ETOILES MONTE-CARLO”
by Ilaria Salerno
MONACO. 2021 will be a year dedicated to gastronomy for SBM – Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer. With its 30 restaurants and bars and embellished with over 150 years of experience in the art of living and gastronomy, the Europe’s most starred resort by virtue of its 7 Michelin stars, launchs the first edition of the «Festival des Etoilés Monte-Carlo». From May 29th the spectacular event will match the arrival of Chef Yannick Alléno at the Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo, the news awaited in the Elsa kitchen at Monte-Carlo Beach, and the return of Andrea Berton at the Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo. It will be a festival of dinners, officiated by some extraordinary pairs of Chefs. The event will start on May 29 at the Blue Bay in the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort, directed by chefs Marcel Ravin & Michel Sarran. Other performances by exceptional couples of Chefs will follow in the various starred restaurants of the Group. They will alternate until the final apotheosis when all the starred Chefs of the Group will propose the Festival’s closing dinner at the Casino de Monte-Carlo. In fact, more than a festival, it will be a real celebration of gastronomy, orchestrated by its protagonists, the talented Chefs who will make it shine, the same Chefs that we have been missing so much in recent times. 
Every month, from May to November next (excluding July & August) a couple of Chefs will offer you a unique dinner in one of the restaurants of the Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer Group – to be exact at Le Blue Bay in Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort, Le Grill at the Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, Le Louis XV-Alain Ducasse at the Hôtel de Paris or Elsa at Monte-Carlo Beach. For the occasion, the “house” Chefs have chosen a prestigious fellow colleague, with whom they will form a multi-starred duo for an exceptional 4-hands dinner. These will be some authentic gastronomic events concocted by two talents, two great personalities gathered for two different culinary visions. It is therefore with great pleasure that we announce the participation of Michel Sarran, Riccardo Camanini, Mauro Colagreco and Michel Guérard, who have accepted the friendly invitation of their fellows chefs Marcel Ravin, Franck Cerutti and Dominique Lory. This first Festival will reach its climax with a final evening in the prestigious Salle Médecin of the Casino de Monte-Carlo. Monte-Carlo Chefs Société des Bains de Mer will present their “Signature” dishes for the occasion. It will be a journey to a starry galaxy like only Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer can offer you. If you want to make this experience, and live the unique “Monte-Carlo” experience 100% you can book your stay in one of the Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer hotels. A big surprise awaits the lucky ones: a meeting with the starred Chefs on one of the Festival dinners. A rare moment, which will engrave an unforgettable memory in your memory.
Saturday, 29 May 2021 two bold Michelin-starred chefs, two culinary styles bursting with creativity and modernity await you at this exceptional soirée, opening the ball of the Monte-Carlo Festival of Stars. Marcel Ravin, the Michelin-starred chef at the restaurant Blue Bay, has invited Michel Sarran to Monaco for this event, a chef with two Michelin stars for the Toulouse restaurant that bears his name. They became friends after meeting 14 years ago, when Michel Sarran invited Marcel Ravin to participate in a Festival of Gastronomy in Toulouse. On Saturday 29 May, these two friends will meet again at the fine dining restaurant Blue Bay, for a remarkable four-hands dinner, where their worlds will collide.
These modern chefs draw inspiration from their pasts, each playing with the flavours of his childhood — Southwest France and the Caribbean. Generosity and sharing will be the hallmarks of this special event, with the intention of conveying this pair’s feelings and shared joy through their dishes! “We are merchants of enjoyment”, says M. Sarran who has cooking in his genes: his mother, Pierrette, ran an inn, Auberge de Bergerayre, in Gers, his home region. This family-run inn was where he learned to cook. After working with famous chefs such as Alain Ducasse, Michel Guérard and Jean-Michel Lorain, he became a chef at Le Mas du Langoustier in Porquerolles, where his talent was noticed and he earned his first Michelin star in 1991. He then opened his restaurant Michel Sarran in Toulouse, “the Pink City”, close to his roots. The restaurant has held two Michelin stars since March 2003. Michel Sarran loves his region, his terroir and the products of Southwest France. But he doesn’t feel constrained by that. He is also a modern chef of his time, who travels abroad several times a year, visiting places like Japan, Thailand, Egypt, and Turkey. His cuisine is inspired both by his home and far-off places. His creations are an ode to indulgence. Complete, warm, candid, he creates cuisine that reflects himself, strong and subtle, simply flavourful and whole. Michel Sarran’s talent has also brought him to television. Since 2014, he has been a judge on the Top Chef programme.
As for chef Marcel Ravin “Cooking is an act of love…”, he says. Marcel Ravin’s journey has taken him from one Rock to another, having departed his native Martinique as a teenager, arriving at the “rock” of Monaco in 2005. It was a 7,000-km “hop” that, ten years after his arrival, earned him a star in the Michelin Guide with his Blue Bay, th
e Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort’s gourmet restaurant. Often hailed for his creativity, his dishes showcase his personal style and culinary signature, shaped by his culture and identity where many continents intermingle. The result is daring cuisine that is constantly reinvented, mixing Mediterranean and Caribbean products to pay tribute to his homeland and adopted country. The «Festival des Etoilés Monte-Carlo» program continues on June 11: Dinner at the Grill, Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo. June 12: Lunch and dinner at the Grill, Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo where Franck Cerutti welcomes chef Riccardo Camanini, from the Lido 84 * restaurant, in Gardone Riviera (Lake Garda). In September, the event will take place on a date to be determined at the Elsa, Monte-Carlo Beach. October 15: Dinner at the Louis XV-Alain Ducasse at the Hôtel de Paris where Dominique Lory welcomes chef Michel Guérard, from the restaurant Les Prés d’Eugénie ***, in Eugénie-les-Bains. November 5: Dinner at Blue Bay, Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort where Marcel Ravin welcomes chef Mauro Colagreco, from the restaurant Le Mirazur ***, in Menton. The closing dinner of the event will take place at the Casino de Monte-Carlo with the participation of all the Michelin-starred Chefs of Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer. Moreover, and for a moment in all serenity, COYA Monte-Carlo has prepared the Monte-Carlo Cares program for the safety of its customers and collaborators, a health certificate issued by Bureau Veritas, so that the most exclusive of the summer destinations is also the safest.
Reservations: Blue Bay, Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort: Tel. +377 98 06 03 60 – Email: Reservation-McBay@montecarlobay.mc. – Louis XV-Alain Ducasse at the Hôtel de Paris and Le Grill:Tel. 377 98 06 88 64 – Email: restaurantshoteldeparis@sbm.mc
Information on the Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer Group
Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer has offered an unprecedented art of living since 1863, a unique resort in the world with 4 casinos including the prestigious Monte-Carlo Casino, 4 hotels (Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carl , Monte-Carlo Beach, Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort), the Thermes Marins Monte-Carlo, 30 restaurants of which 5 collect a total of 7 stars in the Michelin Guide. The main hub of nightlife, the Group offers a formidable range of events. The creation of a new district in the center of the Place du Casino, One Monte-Carlo: high standing residences, shops and restaurants and a congress center. The vision of Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer: to make Monte-Carlo the most exclusive experience in Europe.
Press Contacts: Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de MerT.377 98 06 64 14 / presse@sbm.mc montecarlosbm.com @montecarlosbm #mymontecarlo – Eric Bessone: Senior Press Relations Manager Monaco, Italy, Middle East, Apac T. +377 98 06 63 62
