This summer, athletes from around the world will arrive in Paris to compete in the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic games. During their time in the French capital, competitors will enjoy life in the Olympic Village, a comfortable residential space designed to meet their every need, where they’ll sleep, socialise, train, recover, and of course, eat!
“France will invite the world to its table”
If there’s anything the French are known for doing exceptionally well, it’s preparing and serving a meal, so it should come as no surprise that they’ve taken their role of feeding the world’s top athletes very seriously. Dubbed “the world’s largest restaurant” thanks to its 3,500 seats, the Olympic Village restaurant will be open 24/7 and will serve roughly 40,000 meals per day, using a maximum of seasonal, local, organic, and French-certified ingredients. In this way, "France will invite the world to its table," noted catering manager Philipp Wurz.
However, feeding 15,000 hungry athletes is no easy feat! To meet the particular demands of this challenge, the Olympic organising committee called on three talented French chefs to design an appetising menu designed around the nutritional requirements of high-level sports, while highlighting French tradition and savoir-faire. Ready to meet them?
Three chefs representing the best of French gastronomy
Amandine Chaignot made a name for herself working in fine dining before opening her celebrated café-bistrot Café de Luce in 2021. She describes her style of cooking as favouring dishes that are comforting and regressive.
Few chefs could understand the relationship between diet and athletic performance as well as former professional basketball player Alexandre Mazzia. With three Michelin stars, the chef is known for his bold use of spices and atypical flavour associations, and he described bringing a “fun, gourmet, and healthy” touch to his Olympic dishes as being key to the job. He confided in the Observer, “What’s exciting about hosting the Olympic Games in France is… it’s about showing off all our [expertise] and all our values, such as gastronomy and French-style hospitality, which I think is important.”
Born in France and raised in Algeria, Michelin-starred chef Akrame Benallal is known as a “nomad” cook who loves to combine flavours and textures from his travels. Inspired by the organisation’s sustainability endeavours, Benallal opted to create dishes focused on vegetables, telling France 24, “When there are 40,000 meals a day I don’t want anyone to be let down… it’s vegetables that unite everyone.”
And now that we know who’s in the kitchen, what exactly is on the menu?
What’s on the menu at the Olympic games
Each day, athletes will have their pick from a salad bar, grill section, cheese and bakery offerings, a hot food buffet, dessert bar, and a wide range of fruits. In addition, the chefs will be on site whipping up their signature offerings. For Benallal that’s a Muslinoa: crispy quinoa muesli served with fat-free smoked yoghurt, Parmesan, and fresh herbs.
Amandine Chaignot wanted to represent French terroir, noting France 24 “it was quite obvious for me to make a croissant that I could twist. So you have a bit of artichoke puree, a poached egg, a bit of truffle, and a bit of [goat] cheese.”
Meanwhile Alexandre Mazzia has concocted a recipe featuring chickpea cream, with peas and smoked beetroot, flax bread “Olympic rings” and fresh herbs.
Sharing a bit of French savoir-faire
In addition, athletes will be able to take their own turn in the kitchen, learning how to make one of France’s most iconic dishes: the baguette! They’ll be invited to attend workshops where they will be able to shape, score, and bake their own baguettes.
The Olympic Games are always exciting, but we’re particularly looking forward to watching the events with some beautiful French scenery in the background. To the athletes, we just have to say: good luck and bon appétit!
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