Haan is Mary Celeste’s talented young chef. Half chinese, half romanian, he grew up in Toronto. His love for food drove him in many kitchens all around the  world, in Korea, Denmark and finally Paris. Haan is pretty released that the oyster months are over to celebrate raw fish in little plates for sharing- along with one of Carlos cocktails.

What are you doing in Paris?

I am the chef at the Mary Celeste and I have been here for about 7 months. Things seem to be going pretty well…so far.

Why did you come here?

Well, I came here because I wanted to learn French food actually, and this job came and I am not cooking French food, voilà! My first job was in a Thai restaurant, one of the best in Canada. After that I went cooking in Copenhagen for another year and a half. I was cooking in a place called Kiin Kiin, the only Michelin star Thai restaurant. So my background is Asian food.

Do you travel to complete your food education?

Yes, that’s the very nice thing about cooking. You can go anywhere and you don’t need to speak that much. You just need to know some words like “vegetables” and “oui, chef”. That’s an amazing job for travelling and learning.

That’s the reason you chose this job?

I think so…But mostly because I just love food. I did not think  “I want to travel” but just “I want to cook”. But travelling is one of the very nice things about the job, for sure.

What did you learn about creation in the different kitchen you cooked?

It depends in what restaurant you’re in, what chef you’re working for. For example, when I was working at the Michelin place, in Danemark, they use very local food. So they get inspiration from traditional Danish ingredients. And like in most Michelin places, you try to make the food interesting, to surprise customers with something they never have tried before. When I am in an Asian restaurant, the main focus is that the food needs to be delicious. That’s how personally I like to cook and that’s how I get my inspiration for cooking. It does not have to be interesting, it does not have to be new, it just has to be delicious. People eat it and they want to come back and eat it again. And remember it. That’s how every dish is created here.

How do you determine it is “delicious”?

Most things we try. I taste it and the other cooks taste it. For me, when you eat something, you say it is delicious because you want to eat it again, you want more of it. You can go to some restaurants, taste something and say “oh, it’s interesting” but maybe you forget it the next day or you do not remember what you had. For mev delicious means you enjoy eating and you want to have it again.

Do you want to make people addicted?

Yes, exactly, I try to make the food like drugs you know.

I read something about big labels in the U.S food industry. They do not try to make people enjoy it too much but just make them want more. [Food, sugar, salt : how the Food Giants hooked us]

[Laughs] I am not like that! There are things that are classic, for example in French cuisine, like a steak-frites or a tartare. People have been cooking that for a hundred years because people love it and come back to it. And my idea is that you have that same feeling when you are eating my food, you want to want to keep on eating it.

Do you have the recipes in mind before going grocery shopping?

No, we work with Terroirs d’Avenir, which is an amazing supplier. What they have changes all the time. We just order something that looks nice and then you kind of “hop hop hop” in your kitchen to make it taste good.

Does the menu change everyday?

There are some things, which are going to stay for a while, for example the endives salad, which has become one of our big things. But the menu will never be the same. There will be new dishes every day for sure.

What is your favorite product right now

The white and green asparagus are amazing. We have just got the first-of-the-season artichokes, they are beautiful. It is almost impossible to get stuff like that in Canada. We have markets there but the country is so big that even if you have fresh products, it’s going to take hours to get there or even days…So the products are never as good as they are here I guess.

How would you describe the Mary Celeste?

Obviously, it’s a bar and we opened as an oyster bar. But me personally, I would really want it to be known for more than just oysters. My cooks and I are working here for more than 14, 16 hours a day and I think it is not fair to them to say it is just an oyster bar.

It is a marketing concept…

Yes, a marketing concept, I know. But it terms of the food, all the stuff here are little plates for sharing, that’s how I really love to eat, that’s how I grew up eating.  I guess it is “fusion” food, but actually for me, when I look at it is more driven by if it is delicious or not. If I am making something which I think will taste good and that does not have ginger or soy sauce, that’s fine! If it needs soy sauce, it is going to have soy sauce. I guess it is fusion but at the same time I have no problem putting things on that are not Asian at all or completely western…

Do you try to match the food with the cocktails?

No, the cocktail menu and the dinner menu are separate, you just come here, you get some food, have some cocktails…

What do people like here?

It is a good space, it looks good, in a great location and I think we have one of the best bartender in Paris, Carlos. I think that in the kitchen, we are also trying to make something different that other places do in Paris. I was not trying to do something new or different but that’s how it is happening. I don’t think you can get this food anywhere else in Paris. Not because I am some amazing chef but just because I have a different background. I am half Chinese, half Romanian, grew up in Canada, I lived in Korea, in Danemark and now in Paris, all these influences came to my cuisine. Most of the chefs here are French or white American or Australian, so they have a pretty similar approach.

Do you go out in other restaurants?
Of course! Normally I always go out to eat Chinese. Chez Xu, rue Volta, is a good place. There is a Vietnamese noodles place too, right by chez Xu [Taing Song Heng] and a really good banh-mi, the Vietnamese sandwich [7 rue Volta]. Another secret is a place called Best Tofu in Belleville, 1,50€ for some fresh tofu, amazing. The best restaurant in Paris !  But if it’s not Asian food, my favourite restaurant is Au Passage. The Chef [Shaun Kelly] is Australian. They’re good friends and come here all the time. I just love their food, it is kind of what we are trying to do here but in a different way. Everything you eat, you want to eat it more.

Is there some ingredients you are afraid or curious to use?
Yesterday I went to the Verre Volé and it was the first time I ate pousse-pieds. I had no idea what it was, but it was pretty good. I still don’t know how to cook it.

Do you think that French customers are harder to please than in other countries?
French people have a very strong tradition, they can be hard to please. The perfect example is the oysters. Some people are going crazy that we do not have bread, but really crazy [yelling]: “You don’t have bread and butter ?” Actually some people tried to go outside to buy a baguette.

So you keep on not giving bread?

Yeah. I mean, the food here is not really meant for bread. We make pancakes, potato and polenta dishes, I don’t think you need bread. When you go to Spain, to tapas, you never get bread, you just get dishes with bread or potatoes but never get bread to fill in. To be like that “I need bread” is a little bit crazy.

There is a Napoleon law, which says that every restaurant must provide bread and water if the customer asks, no matter what…
Yes, I understand it is part of the culture. Every day of the week you can eat bread but if you come to The Mary Celeste just once, I don’t see what’s the big deal if there is no bread…Some French people will probably killing me after saying this…I hope not. I love bread, I love bread! [laughs]

Le Mary Celeste
1, rue Commines
75003
Metro: Filles du Calvaire
reservations: reservations@lemaryceleste.com
Open everyday from 5pm

Chez Xu
9 Rue Volta 75003 Paris
Metro: Arts et Métiers

Taing Song Heng
3 rue Volta 75003 Paris
Metro: Arts et Métiers

Au Passage
1 bis, passage Saint-Sébastien 75011
Metro: Filles du Calvaire

Best Tofu in Belleville
9 Boulevard de la Villette  75010
Metro: Belleville

Terroirs d’Avenirs
6-7-8 rue du Nil, 75002 Paris

article: Claire Nouy http://lescaptures.com