Michel Bras

A forerunner of gastronomic naturalism, Bras is passionate about land as a creative concept. An advocate for sustainability and biodiversity, he also shuns hierarchy in the kitchen and prefers to treat members of his team as “creative collaborators”. Bras learned to cook at his parents’ restaurant, Lou Mazuc, and also studied culinary philosophy and photography. When he was still a young chef, he had the audacious dream of creating “a restaurant in the middle of nature”, which is his true love and inspiration. In 1992 he made his dream come true by opening Bras, a hotel restaurant nestled in the rugged landscape of Laguiole. Bras’s son Sébastien is now the chef there. In 2017 Bras declined the three Michelin stars his restaurant had received. Yet he remains as devoted as ever to the magic he continues to discover in his homeland and in the world of plants – ever faithful to the charm of the natural and authentic.