00:00Welcome to Julien at Café Boulu in the Four Seasons
00:09Well, Julien is the restaurant in the restaurant
00:13Julien is a small restaurant in the Café Boulu
00:17We are in the Four Seasons Hotel in Riyadh at Kingdom Tower
00:21Julien is only a 10-seat counter that curates a special menu
00:26and a special wine pairing with it
00:29The menu is a crescendo of experience
00:31I know Riyadh for quite a while
00:34I was here three years ago
00:36but I also, in my very young time as a young chef
00:42I worked for a Saudi family in the south of France for five months
00:46and I discovered, of course, the Saudi coffee
00:50that I was making every day for the family
00:52but also the many tastes
00:55they had a private chef from Saudi
00:57and there was me cooking continental cuisine
01:00I mean, French cuisine
01:01so I could learn from the Saudi chef as well
01:05certain dishes
01:06but I've always been fascinated by what's happening here
01:11and the evolution of Saudi Arabia
01:14and what's happening in Riyadh, of course
01:16and so being here
01:17I'm very proud to be with Four Seasons
01:19and the Four Seasons here
01:22it's an iconic space
01:23I think they were really the first to be here
01:26as an international brand
01:29well, you know, the Saudi food is
01:31of course, there is yesterday
01:32I had the lamb with the rice
01:34I don't know the name in Saudi
01:36I had a big plate of that beautiful lamb
01:39that is cooked with the rice and some spice
01:42and you usually do that for a celebration
01:45and that was delicious
01:47I've been to family that cook for me
01:51sometimes it's a little too sweet
01:53they like sweet
01:53you know, I tried to understand also the market
01:56so I went to the main market
01:58the big market here in Riyadh
02:01and tried to see all the ingredients
02:03that was really there
02:05serving the market and the supermarket here
02:08and the different restaurants
02:11so that's one way to learn the culture
02:14go to the restaurant, the local restaurant as well
02:17talk with the guests, our customers
02:18but many Saudi people have very well traveled
02:22they come to America, they go to Europe
02:24they go to France, England
02:26I think it's great for us to be here as well
02:29and to bring them a little bit of our country
02:32for me, what I bring at Café Boulu
02:35is a bit of France and a bit of America
02:37and together a unique restaurant in Riyadh
02:41I'm sure that in Saudi today
02:44young people dream maybe to become chef one day
02:47I think first and foremost
02:49they go to a good school
02:50and then they find a good mentor
02:52someone to work for
02:53that's going to teach them
02:55teach them the fundamental of hospitality
02:58of restaurant
03:00I mean importance to care for ingredients
03:02care for people
03:04care for the team
03:05care for the equipment
03:07care for everything
03:08you know, it's an incredible journey
03:11to be a chef
03:12you can travel the world and cook anywhere
03:15but if you're going to stay in your own country
03:17then try to become one of the best also
03:21and represent your cuisine the best way possible
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