Quotes from Joel Robuchon

There is no such thing as the perfect meal; one can always do better.

I travel a lot. If you look at my suitcase, everything is extremely well-packed and well-folded; people who travel with me are impressed at how organized I am. Some would refer to me as a maniac for this.

When I was young, they said in the future that you'd just take a pill and never have to eat. That will never happen.

I love the sun; I would have trouble living in Canada.

We the chefs have a responsibility to learn about the chemical makeup of food!

If you are killing a chicken and cooking a chicken, it has to taste like chicken. Veal has to taste like veal. You have to be able to identify what you're eating. One of my worst experiences is when I can't tell what I'm eating. It is a waste.

I am a gourmand. I like to eat. When I have something that I like, I tend to have too much of it. That is a guilty pleasure.

Sushi is taking over the world. It's like pizza: you can get it everywhere.

Cooking is chemistry, really.

Cooking is creating emotion.

The simpler the food, the harder it is to prepare it well. You want to truly taste what it is you're eating. So that goes back to the trend of fine ingredients. It's very Japanese: Preparing good ingredients very simply, without distractions from the flavor of the ingredient itself.

I think I grew up with the idea that there was something comforting about preparing food.

When new cooks come to work for me, they obviously make mistakes at the beginning or there's some messiness to the presentation. What I always say to them is: 'If you were cooking this for your mother or your girlfriend, would you make those mistakes?'

Once you establish a diet, you can make exceptions once you're able to balance it out.

Taste is developed by the diversity of the products one can sample. I think our children today may be missing an education about food. We must teach them to know their cuisine and to know the equilibrium of nourishment. That is very important for health.

Southeast Asia food uses many different types of spices which are quite new to me, like the curry leaves which I saw at the Kreta Ayer wet market in Chinatown. With such spices used in cooking, this usually imparts a strong aroma to Southeast Asian food, which appeals to the senses.

In France today, people no longer eat as much heavy food and fat as they did 15 or 20 years ago. These days, French cooking, through the influence of 'grande cuisine,' has become a bit lighter. And we are beginning to discover the original flavors of our produce.

When a dish works, it works for everyone, whether you're Asian, European, African, American or anybody else.

You get a lot of young chefs who have a lot of savoir-faire, a lot of technical knowledge. What's important is to convey to them a cuisine that is made from the heart.

I've never thought of myself as having that much of a temper. But it's true that I can't stand it when things are not done properly. When that happens, I cannot control my reaction.

Right now, I am doing the reverse of molecular gastronomy. I'm working with scientists to find ingredients and produce that are proven to be good for you.

I like a well-roasted rotisserie chicken and eggs cooked various ways, like sunny-side up or scrambled. It's comfort food for me.

A few years ago, kids from poor areas in France were asked to draw items of food. For a chicken, they drew a drumstick. For a fish, they drew a fish stick. Those are extremes, but there is a lot that needs to be done to help children discover good food.

I've never followed a vegan or vegetarian diet in the past, but I think I could do it. It would not be easy. I have worked with nutritionists who have said a vegan diet is not necessarily all positive for your health, because you need nutrients you only find in meats. I believe in a balanced diet.