For six years Guy Martin has maintained his Michelin-three-star status at Paris Le Grand Véfour. Next month he'll be in Bangkok, cooking for guests at the Oriental Hotel's Le Normandie restaurant.

His magnificent dishes will be served from October 2 to 7.

There's a sizzle of anticipation in the air here and another over the phone as he tries to chat with The Nation from his kitchen in the French capital.

"Sorry, I can't really concentrate right now - customers are streaming in."

Martin is world-renowned for his artistry, which amounts to culinary revolution. To classic French haute cuisine he adds flashy new ingredients drawn from his global experience.

His food is comparatively light, meeting today's craving for healthy dining, yet somehow he incorporates all the grand traditions. Nostalgia doesn't go hungry.

"My mother taught me how to eat right," he says. "She's a very good cook, and I learned early on how people should enjoy their food - as well as the definition of good food."

But Martin didn't discover his own flair for cooking until his late teens and, believe it or not, he was first trained in a pizzeria, while still dreaming of being a rock star.

Then came the thunderbolt.

"At the pizzeria, the revelation came while I was looking at the finished platters. I understood that cooking was a way to express oneself, and it dealt with personal creation. I proceeded to study all the recipes from a cookbook I had at home to get a better understanding about the basics."

Martin followed his passion, and awards just seemed to keep coming his way. In 1985, while at the Chateau de Divonne on Lake Geneva, he was awarded his first Michelin star, and five years later, his second.

There was a series of Chef of the Year prizes, and then in 2000, his third Michelin supernova.

"I felt as if time had stopped," he says of the moment he heard. "At first it gave me a great deal of serenity, as if everything made sense, as if I was on the right path. Then I wanted to dance on tables, to let my joy explode.

"The third star establishes me as a chef - it settles me down. It's also an inspiration for kids from small towns who aspire to be chefs, but don't have contacts in prestigious restaurants. My third star proves that you can be among the best while being self-educated and atypical. If one does this job with poetry and pleasure, anything is possible."

Martin utilises influences from his native Savoy in southeastern France, but his admirers can always expect his imagination to run wild and take them down untraditional paths.

"There are a few Savoyard notes in my menu, such as fish from the Bourget and Léman lakes, and then there are cheeses from Beaufort, Reblochon, Corne d'Abondance," he says.

"But these are more than just products - they represent a whole way of Savoyard, free and independent, with our own cuisine, rich in spices."

For this special occasion at Le Normandie, Martin will for the first time prepare wild game, including venison and duck, all imported from France.

He's working closely with Carlos Gaudencio, one of his top chefs at Le Grand Véfour, who is stationed in Bangkok to make sure everything served at the restaurant is to his standard.

On the menu is a nine-course feast at Bt7,500++ that has his signature dishes like Brittany lobster with wasabi sauce and pan-fried turbot with shitaake mushrooms and horseradish.

Lunch is a three-course set menu for Bt2,100++, featuring red tuna and vegetables set in jelly with nori seaweed and fennel seed, and pork fillet with aromatic crust, confit of pork belly with fried fruits and crushed quinces. A la carte dishes are also available.

For reservations, call (02) 659 9000.

Sirin P Wongpanit

The Nation