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He’s the personal ad that most men would like to write and few women would believe: Intelligent, successful, warm, passionate, witty, very talented and very, very French. Indeed, after an evening of conversation with Jean-Robert de Cavel, I was greeting all my friends for the entire week with an enthusiastic “Bonjour!”
A native of Lille, France, Jean-Robert arrived in Cincinnati in the fall of 1993 to take the helm of the Maisonette, no small task with 25 years of five-star ratings attributed to a single chef, his predecessor, Georges Haidon. Not only did De Cavel maintain the Maisonette’s reputation and integrity, he guided it into new culinary territory as he introduced loyal customers to a lighter, yet complex palate. He committed himself to five years and stayed seven, leaving in 2001 to pursue his dream of growing his own restaurant.
He and his wife, Annette Pfund-de Cavel, a knowledgeable, respected food and beverage manager from Germany met working at Plaza Athenée in New York City, then made the decision to plant roots in Cincinnati as they gave birth to their first child, a daughter, in March. Now they’re awaiting a new arrival — their new restaurant, Jean-Robert at Pigall’s — in July.
CB: It’s been quite a long labor for this restaurant — you’ve had to keep pushing back the opening date. What’s been the hold-up?
De Cavel: Well, we are dealing with a three-floor historic building that was built in three parts — the first in 1823, then 1880 and 1940.
Just like an old house that you renovate, it has issues and surprises. To be profitable, we had to use the second floor which has not been used for at least 15 years in the restaurant business. So we had to build an elevator to come up to code. All the electrical had to be redone, water drained. As we tore down walls we found asbestos, so we had to take care of that. We changed contractors midway to one more comfortable with a smaller project of this size.
CB: You’ve worked in New York, the Caribbean, Europe. Why open your first restaurant in Cincinnati?
De Cavel: The ‘where’ question was the biggest question. We are in a business where we don’t move — people come to see us. The more people you know, the more they come to see you. With my position at the Maisonette for seven years, I really invested myself in the community and felt welcomed by the city. I have worked in very interesting places and maybe could have gone back to New York, but why? Some-times we make things too complicated: We will look far away for an answer and forget what is right under our feet. We looked around and felt Cincinnati was a good place.
CB: How did you decide on the Pigall’s building?
De Cavel: I was looking around for a comfortable space in downtown Cincinnati. I was walking around and saw that Pig Al’s [the building’s most recent restaurant, a BBQ joint owned by chef Jimmy Gheradi] was closed. I called Jimmy and looked at the building, but was not ready for it at the time — but always keeping it in the back of my mind. I started pulling things together, investors and such, and we decided it would be a good building for our ideas.
CB: You purchased the building before last April’s riots. Did you worry about your restaurant’s potential for success?
De Cavel: Sure, the riots and Sept. 11 affected us. But when you do something, you have to believe in it. I think the people exaggerate the situation more than the situation is. [The city] has some problems, but I think the problems will be resolved. I think that when we realize exactly where the problems are, then we can work together to resolve them. The good part is, the city is reaching the bottom and when you reach the bottom, the only way to go is up. I believe in the city and the people.
CB: (as we walk through the restaurant under construction) What is the look and concept for Jean-Robert at Pigall’s?
De Cavel: Contemporary but not modern, casually elegant, soft colors. I want it to be very personal, as if I invited everyone over to my house for dinner. I’ve used as many local people as possible to help design and build it — local artists, and so on — so people feel they own a piece of it. I want to do the best I can to make people feel comfortable when they come here, from atmosphere, to service and menu. Even the staff: I don’t want them to work for me. I want them to work for the restaurant so we will all be successful. I look at it more from the heart than the wallet.
CB: And the menu?
De Cavel: Again, casually elegant. Not provincial, not French. Very good, very delicious, but accessible to three generations — not a “special occasion” restaurant or menu.
CB: What was your first job?
De Cavel: My dad was in the car business, so when I was a teenager I cleaned and washed the cars on his lot. When he had a special, my brother and I had to distribute fliers on all the windshields.
CB: How did your childhood experience in northern France shape your culinary career?
De Cavel: There were five of us kids, and my mom stayed home to take care of us. She would make a big breakfast, then we all came home from school and my father from work for lunch. Later she cooked dinner for the kids, we would go to bed and she then made dinner for herself and my father when he came home from work. My mom was not an extraordinary cook, but a good cook; she fed seven people three times a day. We were off on Wednesdays from school, so Wednesday was baking day, where my brother and I helped my mom bake for the weekend. My dad was a typical dad who like to cook for friends on the weekend. So we would go to market with him on Saturday morning. My parents were a big influence in my life and you could say I was a very good student.
CB: How did you enter the field at a professional level?
De Cavel: I applied to a cooking school at 16, but could not get in because it was filled. So, I started an apprenticeship at 40 hours a week. Being in the field [instead of school] turned out to be the best thing: I worked hard and enjoyed it. That is my advice to young people interested in cooking as a career: Work in the field first and then go to school if you like it. You have to love it. It doesn’t matter where you work — in fine dining or a little café — in the end you have to care about what you put on the plate.
CB: In one sentence, describe your food philosophy as a chef.
De Cavel: I believe every time a dish comes out from the kitchen, everyone who’s involved with the dish should be envious of the customer that is going to eat it.
This article appears in Jun 5-11, 2002.