Son of Aubrac
Sébastien is one with his territory and his culture since always. The fruits of this land constitute its raw material, the source of its commitment and the emblem of its restaurant.
Aubrac, source of inspiration
"This territory gave us everything," likes to recall Sébastien Bras by evoking Aubrac. He is the cradle of Sébastien, born in Laguiole, and his cuisine. An enlightened environment with dark and bewitching skies, infinite trays, lights that flush out the granite rocks and lighten the sluts of the burons. Landscapes that the Bras family managed to capture by settling on the stubble of the Suquet, the Petit Mont, with its breathtaking view. Aubrac becomes a permanent inspiration. No question, however, of cultivating an outdated and rustic image, but rather a contemporary, enlightened vision. Cooking the products offered to him by this land is also for Sébastien the way to give back to the country what he offered him.
Picking: from earth to plate
In Sébastien's kitchen, it all starts with a picking in the early morning, around the Suquet or in the undergrowth, clearing or meadows a few tens of minutes of walking. A simple getaway may be enough to bring back a few strands of cistre, a handful of bears garlic or the real pancake. More than an essential gesture, an awareness which reconnects to nature, to its profession, and inspires the teams which feel every day the truth of the path which leads from the earth to the plate.
The Lagardelle garden: vegetable directory
The cook also has 6 kilometers from the restaurant, from another secret garden from which its brigade is drawn daily: the Lagardelle garden whose keys to Michel Bras, which watches over the seeds, helped in precious accomplices, James and Nicolas. In this green library, it can count on an incomparable gastronomic repertoire, with the appearance of a conservatory of edible plants, which sees more than two hundred different specimens of shoots, stems, roots, vegetables or other fruit trees.
Support local producers
"We live by this territory, it is important to favor it on the plates," defends Sébastien Arm. "Thus, we adore the pure pure race Aubrac of the Maison Conquet, transplant and its sector of excellence around the Triple Lambais lamb, the cheese cooperative young mountain of Laguiole and its dairy products, but also small producers that we find. Here young market gardeners who like to experiment with new cultures with us, there a professional mushroom picker ”. Sébastien does not hesitate to transform himself into an ambassador of local sectors when they need his active participation or some exceptional recipes such as that of the veal of Aveyron and Ségala or for the General Confederation of Roquefort.
The knife: a whole symbol in Laguiole
Difficult to escape the magnetic fascination of the knife when you grew up by admiring your grandfather Marcel Forgeron shoot down his mass on his anvil. Especially in this village of Laguiole marked with a hot iron for the quality and authenticity of blades that have chopped its image. In this country, everyone keeps in their pocket this small piece of sharp metal, given as a ritual during the passage in adolescence. A passion transformed by Sébastien into a collection, then in making. With his father Michel and his uncle André, he created identity knives for each of his restaurants. The Japanese company Kaï, a specialist in the blade for several generations, even published with the chefs an entire collection of knives and kitchen utensils which continue to grow in a common quest for the ideal tool. The most expensive blades in Sébastien remain in any case those who accompany him in the kitchen every day and which he likes to sharpen, with concentration, before each service.
The cistre: the emblem
Fennel of the mountains or cistre (Meum athamanticum), this plant has become over the years the real vegetable coat of arms of the Suquet, its drawing has at the top of the invitations, menus, jackets of the cooks. It grows at altitude only where the environment is pure, as on the Aubrac sets and crystallizes all the love of Sébastien for nature and its region. He likes to infuse it in oils and thus distill it in its dishes or even certain desserts.