'Generosity is my signature dish' at restaurant Ursus by Clément Bouvier

The 33-year-old French chef Clément Bouvier operates at high altitude. His restaurant Ursus is located at an altitude of 2,000 metres in a five-star hotel at the ski resort of Tignes. The restaurant has been awarded a Michelin star as well as a Green Star. In addition to Ursus, Clément runs two brasseries, La Table de Jeanne, Le Panoramic et Le Palet, at the same ski resort, where visitors can eat typical winter sports dishes such as fondue and raclette. Besides this, he also runs a 220-squaremetre supermarket. ‘Here we sell products we make ourselves: cold meats, cheese, ready-to-eat dishes, jams, chocolates and wine.’ On the slopes around Tignes, Clément also has Le Panoramic, a restaurant serving between 1,500 and 2,000 guests daily. ‘We have a large kitchen there, and everything we serve is prepared fresh on the day itself. We prepare our dishes in a wood-fired oven and have a very extensive dessert buffet. The restaurant employs six pastry chefs and a baker, who also bakes his own bread here.’ Finally, on the ski slopes, there is Le Palet: a restaurant that Clément took over in 2023. ‘It used to be a self-service restaurant, but that didn’t work out well. Now we let people sit at tables and place their orders and pay via a QR code. Then we make sure the food is served to their table.’

Never a dull moment, therefore, in Clément’s life. He is brimming with energy and bursting with plans. But he also has some worries. About his sky-rocketing energy bill, for example. ‘We decided to turn on our ovens and steamers at night to save costs. We turn on the stove in the morning to prepare the dishes, but in the afternoon, it is turned off. If we are able to empty out one of the refrigerators, we turn it off immediately. We have installed motion sensors so the lights don’t stay on everywhere. This is how we try to be economical with energy and gas.’ Clément is also price-conscious with regard to his dishes. ‘Instead of using truffle in a dish, we think carefully about less expensive ingredients we can use to achieve the same fantastic result. Fish has become so much more expensive that instead of 140 grams, we serve 110 grams with more garnishes and vegetables. In this way, you save 30 grams of fish each time and recover the cost of every fourth serving. As long as our diners don’t notice anything! So you have to be very generous with your garnishes and side dishes.’

If there is one thing Clément has learnt by now, it is that everything revolves around customer focus and service. ‘We specialise in cooking and know all about excellent flavours. But everything is ultimately about the service you provide, and how you make your guests feel welcome. Whether you run a shop, bakery or restaurant, people need to feel welcome and acknowledged. A person who gives you a bad review is someone who has not felt properly welcomed.’

Clément is pleased with his skilled hands. ‘If you were to take these away from me, it’s like I wouldn’t have a tongue or a palate anymore. My hands are essential for my work! I feel the products, I want to stir in the pans and feel the heat of the stove, and I want to give each plate a phenomenal finish. Moreover, my hands allow me to eat food. I’m a foodie – and perhaps the primary function of my hands is to help me put things into my mouth. They are useful for bringing me things that allow my taste buds to explode.

Debic’s products regularly pass through Clément’s hands. ‘For example, we make a sauce from the bones of a salmon trout, which we smoke in a smokehouse. Naturally, we need a good cream to make this into an exceptional sauce. At the last minute, we add liquid caviar for a salty touch. We also use cream for a zabaione made from dehydrated pine cones, which we grind into a powder. This powder tastes very bitter by itself; but with a good cream, we turn it into an appealing dish. Of course, we also use cream in our risotto made with cardoon, a vegetable commonly used in this region.’ And does Clément have a signature dish? ‘That, without a doubt, is generosity. Generosity throughout the business. Everyone who comes to any of our establishments should be able to say just one thing when they leave: that it was generous.’