Ducasse sur Seine – Floating Restaurant in Paris
Alain Ducasse is the most Michelin-starred chef in the world, with twenty-one stars under his belt. And he’s also starting the first “floating restaurant,” in Paris— his Ducasse sur Seine.
The Restaurant Ducasse sur Seine
The restaurant, designed by naval architect Gérard Ronzatti, was designed to bridge the worlds of naval and terrestrial design, evoking at turns Classical and Baroque architecture. The iconoclastic exterior is complemented by the simplicity of the interior. Designers Maurizio Galante and Tal Lancman attribute their inspiration to a simple white bowl of raspberries, picked in Versailles, that Ducasse served the duo in his Plaza Athenée restaurant.
“This experience nurtured our approach of magnifying ordinary things, to introduce magic in everyday life,” said Lancman.
A World Premiere
Ducasse Sur Seine, the name of Ducasse’s new adventure, launched in partnership with a specialist in fluvial tourism and a French public financial institution, is billed as a world premiere. It is the first 100 percent electric riverboat to welcome diners for gastronomic cruises on the French capital’s majestic, monument-lined waterway.
Aquatic Flying Saucer
At first sight, the structure resembles an ovoid aquatic flying saucer, all glass and steel, with an elegant transparency, and a play of lights revealing a dining room at each end and a superior deck for cocktails and afternoon tea. The interior appointments, entrusted to a team of Israeli-Italian designers, are in nuances of watery blue-grey and pearly beige. All of the codes of a contemporary fine dining restaurant, Ducasse-style, are here; stylish service staff, crisp white linens, custom-designed porcelain and silver cutlery. The cruise even boasts its own nautical motto, “Voluptas Urbis Adposita,” engraved on silver plates and a wavy blue logo, freely translated, “the delights of the city unfurled at your table.”
Launched by multi-Michelin-starred chef Alain Ducasse, ‘floating restaurant’ Ducasse sur Seine sails through the city past icons like Notre Dame at lunch and dinner, served at white-clothed tables. Pricier menus at both services including wine pairings. At 4pm, 4.30pm and 5pm, you can order a sweet and savoury dish while the boat remains docked opposite the Eiffel Tower.
Silent Eco-Friendly Electric Boat
The eco-friendly electric boat’s motors are silent, allowing you to concentrate on the ultrarefined French cuisine, such as chilled blue lobster with truffle vinaigrette or guinea fowl stuffed with foie gras, and, of course, the views. A roof terrace opens in summer for afternoon tea.
