Three minutes with Francis Luzinier
The menu at PARC Brasserie & Bar, located within the Pullman Hotel on Hindmarsh Square, is close to the heart of its executive chef Francis Luzinier who, with each dish, tells the story of humble beginnings on his family farm in the south of France.
BEN How do I pronounce your surname, Francis?
FRANCIS I’m proud that you asked, give it a shot just how it comes to you. You put the emphasis on the zed; Luzinier (Loozee-nye).
BEN Where does your family come from?
FRANCIS I grew up on a farm 150 kilometres inland from Bordeaux in the south of France. When we talk, our accent has a singing emphasis, so we always bring the sunshine. My father and mother were farmers, they grew absolutely everything you could think of, so I did not go to a supermarket until I was 12 years old. As kids, at five o’clock every morning, we had to go and milk the cow. Dad would butcher a 300-kilogram pig and we’d make sausages, pat.s and everything else. I am very grateful for my childhood which taught me knowledge about those very basic elements of food.
BEN What was your introduction to cooking?
FRANCIS At home, we would use every part of the animal. The farm was surrounded by the woods and Dad and I used to go hunting with our hunting dogs to get wild pigs, pigeons, pheasants, rabbits and hares. My parents were out working all day, and I grew up with my grandparents. I helped my grandma who was always at home cooking. Then I started cooking for my family when I was nine or 10 years old.
Photo: Duy Dash.
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BEN When did you get into restaurants?
FRANCIS To make some pocket money in the summer holidays, I worked at a friend’s restaurant and then I started my apprenticeship in a two Michelin-starred restaurant. I absolutely loved it. The entire family prior to me were farmers, so I’m the black sheep who broke the tradition, so to speak.
BEN How did you end up in Australia?
FRANCIS I loved the idea of travel, and early on I was asked if I wanted to go and work at the London Hilton. From there, my boss told me the Adelaide Hilton was opening and looking for chefs. I had never heard of Adelaide, and Australia seemed like the furthest continent in the world, so I said, “let’s go!”. I landed here in 1982 and worked on the opening of the Hilton. I’ve now travelled all around Australia and worked in hotels in almost all cities as well as Thailand and Vietnam. I was open to meeting people, seeing different things, and this is how I learned.
BEN Tell me about your menu at PARC?
FRANCIS We have a brasserie-style menu, which is about simple food with great taste. I’m very proud of what we’re doing. Our menu is approachable for anybody, but we can also cater to a premium level. I have a dessert called Louis the 15th, and it has gold leaf on top. That is not on the menu; I keep that one up my sleeve. I recently made a rabbit stew, using a really nice cabernet sauvignon, and people have loved it; the word is out.
BEN Tell me about the design of the restaurant.
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FRANCIS We are very happy with the look and ambience of the restaurant. We’re all about personalised service. At the best restaurants, waiters do not have the menu in their hands, they know it off by heart.
BEN Do you have a favourite dish to cook at home?
FRANCIS Definitely – duck confit and a good bouillabaisse. It’s dishes like these from my home in the South of France that inspire my menu.
Photo: Jon Wah.
BEN Is there a dish that takes you straight back to the farm?
FRANCIS Garlic soup! I always make it on Sunday night for my wife and I, using the old methods my grandparents taught me. It’s the duck fat that makes the difference.
BEN A tip for how people can incorporate a bit of French cooking at home?
FRANCIS An easy one is a nice slow-cooked ragout with fresh vegetables. Or with my steak, I like to have it with good mashed potato made with French butter and cream. For dessert I would make crepes Suzette, which is easy and flavoursome. One of my old favourites is making shortcrust pastry, filled with creme patissiere and strawberries or fruit on top.
BEN What has kept you working in hotel restaurants all these years?
FRANCIS There’s so much diversity in hotels. It takes years to build up a successful restaurant, and I salute the people who take on that challenge. We are lucky that we have guests staying overnight at the Pullman, and if the food is right, they will eat here. That is our job.
This article was first published in the October 2024 issue of SALIFE Magazine.
