💕「愛台灣，我的選擇」系列第12發：米其林主廚李皞忠於自我的料理之旅
「我出生於台灣，十歲時跟著家人移民到美國，並在加州橘郡落腳。我先在加州州立大學富勒頓分校主修傳播媒體，後來在波莫納加州州立理工大學附屬的飯店幫忙洗碗盤，一路打拼之後終於到加州帕薩迪納的藍帶廚藝學院進修，並在加州知名的 L'Orangerie 餐廳當學徒，開啟了我的頂級料理之旅。在這趟旅程中，我從洛杉磯啟程，接著在拉斯維加斯的 Joël Robuchon 星級餐廳歷練三年，隨後前往紐約，再回到拉斯維加斯和洛杉磯。」
「歷經了十五年後，我來到了人生的十字路口，當時我覺得自己開餐廳的時機到了，我決定在拉斯維加斯、橘郡和台灣之中選擇下一個落腳的地方。Impromptu 餐廳的 #板前精神(counter dining) 是我一直想嘗試的概念，只是需要一個能夠實踐的地方。在美國，表達自己很容易，但同時我也看到台灣的餐飲市場持續演進，過去五到七年來，台灣的餐飲市場迅速成長，以前到處都是牛排館，現在有愈來愈多創意料理和樂於嘗鮮的饕客，尤其受到年輕一代的青睞。當時我也做了市場比較，台北的消費力強，以中產階級為主，如果我訂價正確，應該是可以做得起來；再加上，台灣人懂得品味，但不拘形式，所以我認為 #板前精神 的用餐體驗非常適合台北。至於餐廳的定位，我不希望被定調成法式、義式或其他，這是屬於我的料理，我希望能忠於自己。」— Impromptu主廚李皞
⭐️ 李皞是一位國際知名的主廚，他於於2018年8月在台北創立 Impromptu by Paul Lee，僅花了八個多月就摘到了米其林一星。他的菜無論在食材、烹飪手法或味道的呈現方式都抱有很大的開放態度，#Impromptu 傳達不受任何菜系、手法與表現方式限制的精神。
💕Why I chose Taiwan #12 - Chef Paul Lee's culinary journey
“I was born in Taiwan, and our family immigrated to the United States when I was ten, so I grew up in Orange County, California. I went to Cal State-Fullerton to study communications, then I started as a dishwasher at the school-run hotel at Cal Poly Pomona. I worked my way up and eventually went to culinary school at the Cordon Bleu in Pasadena. During school, I was working at a restaurant called l’Orangerie, which started the fine dining journey for me. I started in LA, then I worked at Joël Robuchon for three years in Las Vegas, then I moved to New York, back to Vegas, back to LA. After 15 years, I was at a crossroads. I felt like it was time for me to open my own restaurant. And then the choice became very clear: Vegas, Orange County, or Taiwan. This concept, impromptu’s ‘counter dining’ was already built in my mind. I just needed a place to execute it. In the States it’s easier to express yourself. But I could see the Taiwan culinary scene was on the rise. Like big time. The past five, six. seven years, the culinary scene [in Taiwan] just grew exponentially. Before, it was all steakhouses. Now you can be a little bit more creative and people will accept it, especially the younger generation. I also started to compare markets. The spending power in Taipei is good. The middle class is huge. And I thought if I set the price right, I think the business would be fine. Plus, people in Taiwan have an appreciation for great cuisine but not formality, so I thought my ‘counter dining’ concept would fit very well in Taipei. As for the restaurant’s style, I was trained in French cooking techniques, but I don’t want to be categorized as French cuisine or Italian or anything else. This
is my cuisine and I want to be true to myself.”
⭐️ Chef/owner Paul Lee is an internationally acclaimed chef. He opened his restaurant in Taipei Impromptu by Paul Lee in August of 2018, and only eight months later, his restaurant earned a Michelin star in 2019. He believed that a restaurant should not be limited by cuisine, technique or presentation, and the word #impromptu perfectly captured this sense of freedom.
