From _The Scotsman_:

Critics blamed for top chef's death 

MARGARET NEIGHBOUR 


FRANCE’S top chefs have launched an unprecedented attack on the 
country’s all-powerful food critics after a Michelin-starred colleague 
apparently killed himself following a critical review. 

Bernard Loiseau was found dead on Monday in the bedroom of his home in 
Saulieu, near his three-star Côte d’Or restaurant in the Burgundy 
region east of Paris. 

A rifle was found at his side and police are investigating the cause of 
death. However, employees and family members have suggested he 
committed suicide. 

The news sent the gastronomic world into mourning and quickly sparked 
debate about the merits of restaurant guides’ rating systems, which 
chefs await each year with bated breath. 

Some blamed recent reviews of Mr Loiseau’s restaurant for pushing him 
over the edge. Although he had maintained his top rating of three stars 
in the 2003 edition of the benchmark Michelin Red Guide, he lost two 
points, going from 19 to 17, in the 20-point rating system of the 
GaultMillau. That guide has gained in prestige and power in recent 
years. 

"He said, ‘If I lose a star, I’ll kill myself,’" said Jacques 
Lameloise, another three-star chef, who has a restaurant in Chagny in 
the Saone-et-Loire region. 

"The critics play with us," he told Le Parisien newspaper. "They mark 
us up, they mark us down. I think that’s what made him crack." 

Paul Bocuse, the famed restaurateur and high priest of "nouvelle 
cuisine", who said he spoke with Mr Loiseau three times a week, 
predicted the chef’s death would raise longer-term questions about the 
ratings system. 

"I am sure that Bernard was very affected by the loss of these two 
points. We should not allow ourselves to be manipulated like that - ‘I 
give you a star, I take one away’," he said. "These critics are like 
eunuchs - they know what to do but they can’t do it. 

"I think GaultMillau killed him. When you are leader of the pack and 
all of a sudden they cut you down, it’s hard to understand, it hit him 
hard." 

He added: "The profession is going to react." 

Mr Loiseau’s widow, Dominique, told LCI television that her husband had 
recently been extremely tired and had not taken a holiday in years. 

Mr Loiseau was known as an innovator in the world of gastronomy and a 
perfectionist who once said he wanted to be to food what the Brazilian 
star Pele was to football. 

In a move unprecedented for a French master chef, Mr Loiseau took his 
business public on the Paris stock exchange in 1998 to expand his chain 
of upmarket eateries, which includes the three Tante restaurants in 
Paris. 

But the Bernard Loiseau company shares have performed erratically and 
Mr Loiseau acknowledged recently: "I can master my frogs, but not the 
bourse". 

Shares in the group were suspended shortly before the start of trading 
yesterday. 

The Loiseau company said yesterday it would go on despite Mr Loiseau’s 
sudden death, with the various establishments shutting down only for 
the funeral, which is likely to be on Friday. 

Police sources said an autopsy would establish the circumstances of his 
death. While few doubted any other conclusion than suicide, GaultMillau 
vigorously defended itself against the accusations against it, saying 
Mr Loiseau had other problems. 

Patrick Mayenobe, a director of the company, said: "As early as 2000, 
he told us that if he went from a score of 19 to 17, he would relish 
the challenge involved in returning to the peak. This great chef 
certainly had other problems." 

And Christine Leconte, who runs the Bernard Loiseau boutique, near his 
Cote d’Or restaurant, questioned whether his death could be attributed 
to fear of failure alone. 

"I think several parameters must be taken into account," she said. 

A good rating by GaultMillau or - the ultimate accolade - three stars 
from its illustrious rival, the Michelin guide, is guaranteed to boost 
sales for any restaurant in France’s rarefied world of haute cuisine. 
Michelin has recently taken to announcing its ratings ahead of schedule 
to cut off rampant speculation over the winners and losers in its 
guides. 

Mr Loiseau was among a handful of established stars who saw their 
scores docked by GaultMillau in its 2003 edition published this month. 

One critic welcomed the downgrades as an injection of reality in 
a "world brimming with overblown egos".  

3 responses total.

That's what I call tightly wound.

Tonight we're having turkey meatloaf.

Sorry I missed dinner, Mary.  Also sorry that that some people's universe's
are so narrow that one would take one's life due to a potentially temporary
setback.  

Yeah. People dont often realize how self centered depression can make a 
person. This makes them, imho, more unhappy, less likely to look beyond 
the present and also more likely to do something as selfish as suicide. 
It's sad, really. 

Response not possible - You must register and login before posting.

- Backtalk version 1.3.30 - Copyright 1996-2006, Jan Wolter and Steve Weiss