(Lyon) After being invited to a prestigious dinner in the presence of Emmanuel Macron on Sunday evening in Lyon, the chef of Martinique origin Marcel Raven was finally turned away. Discrimination has an unfortunate error according to the regulator.
This distinguished chef from a restaurant in Monaco received an invitation dutifully when he introduced himself in the Rhône province, where an evening was held on the sidelines of the International Catering Fair (SERRA) organized by GL Events.
This document, which he produced on social networks, indicates that the President of the Republic, President of GL Events Olivier Ginon, and Jerome Bocuse, President of the Bocuse d’Or Gourmet Competition, asked him to participate in a free dinner. A master chef and pastry chef.
But the staff assigned to monitor the guests refused to enter the building. “They told me I wasn’t on the list and their manager didn’t want to know anything,” says Mr. Raven, “shocked and disappointed.”
“Sad evening. You will be invited and end up on the sidewalk eating Andouillet […] They make it clear to me that we are no different. “I’ll tell you what the humiliation is,” he wrote on Facebook.
Marcel Raven’s Twitter account photo
Marcel Raven’s Honorary Dinner was refused entry by the staff assigned to observe the guests. “They told me I wasn’t on the list and their manager didn’t want to know anything,” says Mr. Raven, “shocked and disappointed.”
“I hope that our profession will come together and that no chef recognized by his colleagues will ever be left on the doorstep again. And I want to believe that the organization of this event apologizes for the lack of consideration,” he added, while the president of the regional community of Martinique, Serge Lechemie, denounced an “unacceptable act.” “.
In response to a question by AFP on Monday evening, GL Events spoke of an “unfortunate mistake”. “We regret this apparent unintended incident on our part, and there is nothing directed at it,” said Luc Dubanchet, Sirha Food Brand Manager.
According to him, “a priori,” Mr. Raven was not on the lists because he had not responded to his invitation. He said other people like him on Sunday night “were able to compensate because we were warned.”
“But there, we were not aware, unfortunately,” Mr. Dubanchet added by offering GL Events an apology to Mr. Raven.