Chef Ameil Guerin of Ameil Gourmet has been awarded The Ordre du Mérite Agricole by the French Republic, making him only the second chef in India to receive this historic honor.
Some excerpts from a conversation:
What surprised me most about India was the extraordinary diversity of its food culture. France has strong regional identities and culinary traditions, but India offers an incredible range of ingredients, cooking methods, spices and food cultures, often changing dramatically from one region to another. The more I discovered, the more I realised how much there was to learn.
Indian cuisine also challenged me to think differently about flavour. In French cooking, we often focus on building a dish through technique, stocks, sauces and carefully controlled combinations. Indian cooking can achieve remarkable depth through the layering of spices, tempering, and an intuitive understanding of how ingredients interact. It taught me that there are many different paths to achieving balance, complexity and depth in a dish.
Another challenge was adapting to the way professional kitchens operate. In my experience, Indian kitchens often have more hands involved in the preparation process, whereas in France, we are generally accustomed to working with smaller teams where each person handles a broader range of responsibilities. This changes the way you approach organisation, planning and delegation. It pushed me to adapt my management style and rethink how to make a kitchen efficient while maintaining consistency and quality.
Beyond the cooking itself, I came to appreciate how deeply food is connected to family, hospitality, festivals and everyday life in India. Food here is not simply something people eat; it is a way of bringing people together and expressing care, identity and tradition.
Ultimately, my experience in India reinforced my belief that cuisine is not just about recipes or technique. It is about understanding the people, culture and stories behind the food. As a chef, that has been one of the most valuable lessons of my journey.
Nagaland, and you will find Mong-mong pepper and wild honey from her hometown reflected in my menu. For me, these ingredients are more than just flavours; they represent a personal connection to the country and to my family. They allow me to bring different culinary worlds together in a way that feels natural and meaningful.
Looking back, India has changed me both professionally and personally. I came here to discover a new culture through food, but I have ended up building a life and a family here. That has been the most unexpected and meaningful experience of all.
French cuisine has taught me the importance of technique, precision, preparation and respect for ingredients. Indian cuisine, on the other hand, has broadened my understanding of spices, regional diversity and the many ways flavours can be layered to create depth and complexity.
At Amiel Gourmet, my objective is not to turn French food into Indian food, but to create a contemporary culinary experience that respects its French foundations while drawing inspiration from the richness of the Indian environment. This might mean working with fresh local produce, exploring seasonal ingredients or incorporating a particular ingredient that brings a new dimension to a dish. For me, the balance is essential: innovation should enhance the food, never compromise its identity.
There is also an important human aspect to this exchange. Coming from France, I arrived with my own expectations of how a kitchen should operate, how tasks should be organised and how certain standards should be maintained. My team, in turn, had its own experience, habits and ways of working. I had to learn that adaptation goes both ways. I needed to understand the team’s reality and find a middle ground between my expectations and what we could realistically deliver together, without losing sight of the standards we wanted to achieve. Over time, that process has taught me a great deal about leadership, communication and building a team.
Ultimately, I believe French and Indian cuisine have more in common than we sometimes imagine. Both place enormous value on ingredients, tradition, knowledge and the experience of sharing food. My role is to bring these worlds together thoughtfully, remaining true to my French culinary roots while continuing to learn from the country I now call home
As a French chef working internationally, it represents a strong connection to the culinary heritage, agricultural traditions and values that have shaped who I am and the way I approach my profession.
But I don’t see it as recognition of my work alone. Behind this achievement are so many people who have contributed to the journey: my business partners, my team, my family and, of course, the guests who have trusted and supported us along the way. The sacrifices, challenges and countless hours that often remain invisible are part of this recognition too. In that sense, it feels like a reward that we can all share.
Finding the right balance between work and personal life is one of my biggest challenges. Running a business in the hospitality industry demands an enormous amount of time and energy, and I often feel that the time I get to spend with her is never enough. Whenever I have free time, I try to make the most of it with her. Those moments are precious and remind me of what truly matters beyond work.
Expanding into new locations, including our planned Devanahalli outlet, is an important part of the journey. I also want to grow our catering business and create more memorable culinary experiences for corporate clients and private celebrations.
Read the full story that first appeared in The Global Indian here:
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