In late 2006, the SETE (Société d'Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel) handed the concession of all of the Parisian monument’s catering services, including the prestigious Jules Verne, over to the Groupe Alain Ducasse for a nine-year period. Once more in the spotlight, Ducasse - the French uberchef who has been awarded fifteen stars - naturally entrusted the renovation of this latest feather in his toque to friend and designer Patrick Jouin, with whom he has been working for the past eight years. Jouin is behind the new interiors of the Plaza Athénée’s restaurant and bar, as well as the design of the Velib*.

 

Since its creation in 1983, the Jules Verne’s very ‘black’ decor had not been modified. But rather than simply redecorate, the restaurant as a whole has been reinvented, and the use of its space completely transformed.

 

Late August 2007 marked the beginning of a project (the most ‘difficult’ and ‘exalting’ of his career, says Jouin) that would last four months and include a number of serious technical challenges.

After all, with seating for 120 people at 125m (410’) off the ground in an iron tower, this is not your run-of-the-mill restaurant... The fittings and furnishings, transported piece by piece, were meticulously weighed so as not to exceed the permitted limit. The Iron Lady is not only worried about her embonpoint, but also about heat and fire - the briefest use of a welding or soldering tool requires prior authorisation and must be carried out under tight supervision!  

 

Space was also a consideration: every item had to be measured with absolute precision, as for a boat or aeroplane. The kitchen, set in the heart of the restaurant, is rather compact, with 45m² (484 ft²) devoted to the actual cooking area. Here again, gas heat is prohibited, so food is cooked using electricity, induction, steam, teppan-yaki (Japanese-style hot plates), and so on... A prep area has been created under the Champ de Mars** where primary ingredients - such as vegetables and fish - are prepared; thus only ‘clean’ victuals are allowed access to the Jules Verne heights...

 

Again, with a view to optimising space and improving circulation, the old bar-lounge has disappeared, replaced by an alluring micro-bar and three rooms named after the sights they give on to: the ‘Trocadéro’, the ‘Branly’, and the ‘Champs de Mars’.

Having a meal at the Jules Verne is never an ordinary experience. And so Patrick Jouin has based his interior design on acknowledging and sublimating certain emotions.

 

There’s magic in the air from the moment you arrive near the steps leading to the restaurant at the foot of the south pillar. You enter via a corridor that gives a fascinating glimpse at the tower’s metallic insides. From there, a private lift takes you 125m up.

The first thing you’ll see is the kitchen and its toqued battalion through a vast window. Clearly, you are not about to set foot on the moon, but in a restaurant!

 

What next? No futuristic decor, no overbearing motifs, simply a sober, contemporary space in warm shades of beige and chocolate.

 

The play of natural and artificial lighting has been masterfully combined, creating an ambience which is perfectly adapted whether daytime or night, lunch or dinner...