GRAND DINNER CHEF

Pascal Sauton, Chef and Owner
Carafe

With a French foundation, masterful cooking on three continents, and a passion for the bounty of Northwest ingredients, Pascal Sauton creates simple, flavorful French fare. . . with the style of a perfectionist.

A Parisian native, Sauton received his culinary training both at L'Ecole Hôtelière de Paris and the renowned three-star Michelin restaurant Lasserre in Paris. He spent time working at several top Parisian restaurants perfecting his education, then took his talents to Cayenne, French Guyana. In 1985 Sauton traveled to North America, where he served as the Executive Chef of The Pear & The Partridge Inn in Bucks County, Penn., then at the New York City branch of Tentation, the famous Parisian caterer. Later, Sauton managed the kitchen at The Fourth Story Restaurant in Denver.

Together, with his wife, Julie Hunter, Sauton credits their move to Oregon in 1997 to a growing interest in James Beard. Curious about Beard’s birthplace, the couple moved to Portland, where Hunter worked as restaurant's manager at the Multnomah Athletic Club and catering manager at In Good Taste and Sauton served as the Executive Chef at Lucere in the Riverplace Hotel. The couple opened Carafe in August 2003.

As a culinary mentor, Sauton inspires others in the kitchen with his enthusiasm for cooking and his fresh ideas. His cuisine infuses simple, Parisian dishes with flavors and preparations from regions throughout France. "I call it the melting pot theory," says Sauton. "I seek out influences from Alsace, the Mediterranean, and even Brittany."

An active member of the Chef's Collaborative and the Food Alliance, Sauton works closely with the best local organic farmers and producers, and crafts his menu specials around the day's deliveries of Northwest seafood, meats and produce. Sauton passionately advocates for many local and national humanitarian efforts, lending his time to the Oregon Food Bank, the Special Olympics, the Relief Nursery for children and Share our Strength. Sauton is also a favorite at many Portland cooking schools including In Good Taste and Whole Foods and a member of the international gourmet society, Chaines des Rotisseurs. He was recently inducted into the Académie Culinaire de France, an international culinary society of chefs from France.

Carafe was recently chosen Best French Restaurant for the second year by Portland Monthly and was featured in their November 2005 restaurant issue. Pascal Sauton received recognition in the August 2004 issue of Fine Cooking Magazine and Carafe was voted the "Best Value in Portland" by Bon Appetit, as well as a "Good Deal" in Gourmet’s 2004 "Restaurant Guide." According to Gourmet, Pascal Sauton "is a skilled Parisian chef with his finger on the pulse of Portland tastes." Sauton recently won top honors at Seafood OREGON'S 2006 Chef Competition and will represent Oregon in New Orleans in August 2006. His winning recipe was Oregon Salmon Effeuillee with a Truffled Dungeness Crab Nage. Sauton and his wife, Julie, are also finalists for the Oregon Ethics in Business Award.

With every creation served at the tables of Carafe, Pascal tempts Portland diners to be more adventurous and to enjoy the wealth of ingredients found regionally, and with an authentic Parisian flare.

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