THE QUIET GENIUS

Chef Atsushi Tanaka on the concept of permanence and mutability

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Japanese chef Atsushi Tanaka opened Restaurant A.T. 11 years ago in Paris to entice and challenge Parisian palettes with progressive, artistic and dynamic cuisine.

Cuisine that is not Japanese, Latin American, Scandinavian nor Parisian, though much of the inspiration comes from these regions. Chef Tanaka's cuisine is influenced by many European culinary techniques, including molecular cuisine, Nordic minimalism and French classicism.

"I'm Japanese and grew up in Japan. I remember watching Iron Chef when I was about 13 and since then I desired to become a chef. I started cooking when I was 16 and a year later I saw Pierre Gagnaire and he soon became my mentor. I've worked everywhere; France, Spain, Copenhagen, Belgium and Stockholm," says the chef.

"My cuisine is inspired by places I've been. It moves in the same direction, but is always developing. I only use local products. And by that I mean ingredients from Spain and Italy, as they are near France. I do not use chocolate because it's not local. Everything I use in Restaurant A.T. is natural. Even our wines are biodynamic. This is our philosophy and concept. We also serve only one tasting menu."

The single tasting menu adapts to seasonal changes. In his gastronomic proposal, chef Tanaka leverages on the concept of "permanence and mutability". The concept of his dishes is stable, but the ingredients used fluctuate based on what nature has to offer. The permanence, persistence and consistency over time in chef Tanaka's dishes seems to compose a haiku, where precise ideas transport diners through a nature-inspired journey.