Le Pavillon: Talented French Chef Jean-Charles Métayer touches down in Halandri

• PIN

Chef Jean-Charles Métayer

A pristine all-white 1940’s house in Halandri is the venue for award-winning Chef Jean-Charles Métayer’s exciting new restaurant, Le Pavillon, which opens on Thursday, October 22, 2020. The highly creative French chef embarks on his restaurant venture with businessman-friend Angelo Contarato, combining ‘the flavours of his two homelands: France and Greece, the Atlantic and the Mediterranean.’ The accent here is on the sea, though the meaty dishes have their moment of glory too!

Refined, with a Mediterranean temperament and French approach, Métayer’s cuisine plays brilliantly on textures and flavours.  His award-winning cuisine has already been appreciated with critical reviews and prestigious awards. And as with all the other restaurants Jean-Charles Métayer has helmed, (from Premiere at the Athenaeum InterContinental and Calypso at Elounda in Greece, besides his numerous stints in Davos and London) his love for seafood comes shining through. A protégé of the legendary Michelin chef  Jacques Le Divellec, a name synonymous with refined French seafood, it is the briny flavours of the sea that are the true stars at Le Pavillon.

Beef tartar at Le Pavillon

The dishes you will try at Le Pavillion’s inaugural menu, such as Chalkida crayfish and carpaccio octopus with pasta and  black sesame, Red mullet in rosemary sauce, served with ravioli stuffed with wild mushrooms, Monkfish with Jerusalem artichokes and red wine chips, Morilles mushrooms and metsovone cheese cream or Black Angus fillet with roasted zucchini and truffle sauce are some of the stand-out dishes from Métayer’s 20-year gastronomic career in Greece, France, Switzerland and England. In addition to an à la carte menu, Le Pavillon boasts an 8-course degustation menu, an impressive wine cellar with 100 labels of Greek and foreign vineyards, premium drinks and classic cocktails.

The exquisitely done up interiors at Le Pavillon

The house (formerly the tastefully-appointed Chefi) has a lush garden and an inviting outdoor dining space, definitely a great asset in our times. And the interior of the house has been thoughtfully restored, retaining all its bygone charm with sophisticated fittings. Traditional decorative ceramic tiles, carved plaster, and old American oak wooden floors have all been preserved and tie in seamlessly with modern elements.

The spacious lush garden at Le Pavillon

With a mix of warm and neutral colours dominated by white, hand-crafted tables made of Greek oak and grey marble,  artworks by Mary Rousioti adorning the walls, the décor here is as tasteful as the contents of your plate. As for the modern minimalist chandelier by British designer Tom Dixon, it was hand-picked by the chef himself. It reminds him of one of his favourite kitchen utensils, a whisk!