We imagine breakfast at celebrated chef Dominique Crenn’s house playing out like a scene from a delicious dream — chive-sprinkled eggs, pepper-speckled bacon and golden waffles towering so high they almost fall off the plate. Couldn’t imagine the owner of San Francisco Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star restaurant Atelier Crenn and one of the most respected toques in the world doing anything less, right?
“When I wake up in the morning,” Crenn says, “I get hot water, lemon and a little bit of apple cider just to settle myself. Then I take a long walk. After that, I come back and get some coffee and go get a little croissant. Or sometimes, I just get toasted bread and a little bit of jam. That’s it. No American breakfast. Never.”
The France native isn’t against American traditions around the kitchen, though. On the contrary, Crenn enjoys Louisiana étouffée and Chicago-style hot dogs almost as much as you do. It’s just that with two active 10-year-old children, she and her wife, actor Maria Bello, don’t need to be weighed down with heavy foods.
As further proof of her love for cuisine around the States, Crenn is joining her culinary colleagues for a flavor-filled celebration at Wisconsin’s Kohler Food & Wine on October 17 to 20. In addition to talking to us about the foodie festival, Crenn also opens up about the Bay Area dining scene and the things that motivate her to keep getting out of bed (and skipping a big breakfast) every day.
Where in the world are you right now?
I am in California. I’ve been in California since the Olympics. I took my kids to Paris, and then I’ve been working my little butt off in my beautiful city of San Francisco.
You’ve been at the top of your industry for many years. What keeps you motivated to keep doing it every day?
What motivates me every day is people, culture, community, pushing the boundaries and learning. It’s being curious and being able to create new things. I don’t wake up in the morning to, “Oh, my God, I’m going to be on top again of my industry.” I wake up in the morning to, “Wow, let’s do something that’s exciting, has a purpose and connects me to others.” That’s what excites me every day. And being grateful for what you do every day.
For those who’ve never visited your San Francisco restaurant, what are they missing?
I don’t know if they’re missing anything. I think they will be curious to discover. I believe that people need to discover and be curious about the things that they don’t know. This is a place that’s an expression of who I am and the people surrounding me and the community [I’m a part of]. I’m an artist. So, you come to my home and, hopefully, I can show you and help you to discover my language of love and the culinary artistry that we are presenting to you. You will come into my world as soon as you come and sit down.
You will probably have a little bit of time before to be at Bar Crenn, which is next door. You can have a beautiful craft cocktail that we spent a lot of years developing and have some snacks and start the story there. So, [when you dine with me] you come to my home and get a little window into my life. Hopefully, you can leave the place with an understanding and a good feeling of, “Wow, that was an amazing experience.”
How would you describe the city’s culinary scene right now?
San Francisco is always at the forefront of new things, discovery, innovation and community — which is a word that I will use [to explain] the history of California, especially San Francisco. It’s a place where everybody comes together from every place, every corner of the world. They create new things. They [come] from China, Japan, Mexico, other places. It’s been always a vibrant place to be, culinary-wise.
I’m very excited today to say that we are still very vibrant and newcomers [regularly] open. COVID has been a very difficult time for the city, but San Francisco has always been a place of resilience and new things happening.
So yeah, it’s the place to be. We have everything. We have the beautiful natural landscape that is around us. We have amazing farmers, fishermen, ranchers, a beautiful community from everywhere. It’s a unique city in the landscape of California but also in the landscape of the United States. It’s still very important to come and discover.
And please do not look at what the news sometimes tells you, which is so politically driven. It’s a beautiful city with beautiful people. Yes, there is struggle. There are beautiful people that are on the street, unfortunately. But you know what? It’s always been a city of resilience and beauty and, culinary-wise, is on top of its game.
Another great city is Kohler, Wisconsin. Have you been before?
No, this is my first time, but I’ve been to Wisconsin. I’ve been to Madison. I just love this state. It has a beautiful landscape, too. And they said that the best cheese is over there. But being a French woman, I will have my thoughts on cheeses.
But the reason why I’m excited about [Kohler Food & Wine] is because it’s very intimate. And it’s also a food and wine festival that you can connect with the people that come, which is amazing. [You connect] with the farmers, winemakers and the guests. It’s like a little community of exchanging ideas and seeing things that, perhaps, you want to learn about. That’s what interests me about those types of events. I don’t like the expensive events where you are just a number and you can’t connect with the people. That’s not what I like.
Do you treat events like Kohler like a reunion? Do you get to see chef friends you haven’t seen for a while?
I’m going to see a lot of people that I know, I guess. Yes, I think the food world is a community of beautiful people. When was the last time I saw Andrew [Zimmern, one of Kohler Food & Wine’s celebrity presenters]? It was not a long time ago, but even if you don’t see people for months or years, when you connect with someone in your industry — it doesn’t matter if it’s a chef or a winemaker — and you have a really beautiful connection, it’s like a friendship. You don’t need to see them every day. When you do see them again, it’s just a beautiful moment. I appreciate that. [I find it] a very precious thing to have a connection with someone. I really cherish that.
Can you name a few places you’ve been where you’ve been pleasantly surprised by the food?
I went to Madison, Wisconsin, last year. There were a lot of places where young talents understand the need to be in their community and get involved with farmers and ranchers and tell their own stories, which I think is beautiful. They are not just opening a restaurant to cook food.
America is a country that is extremely young, 300 years. It’s not a country where they have a food culture that is, like, 1,000 years old. To have those restaurants that pop up all over the country from different areas, different states, it’s just beautiful. I’m so excited and I’m so curious to know more about their own story everywhere from Tennessee and Wisconsin to North Carolina and even Kansas. I love to understand the time and place where they are, and then you learn their story.
America is 50 different states and 50 different cultures. Fifty different ideas about how political things should be. I’m excited to go back to Wisconsin and see what’s going on out there and to learn more about the local chefs, local farmers and their stories. I’m going back to Louisiana very soon. I love Louisiana. And you know that Louisiana used to belong to France a long time ago.
Every time I go back to France, I say, “French people, you got to stop judging America about eating fast food and shitty food.” There is a lot of fast food. There are a lot of places that aren’t serving good food, but there are a lot of beautiful areas where young people are coming up and want to tell the story. I’m a big advocate for American cooking and cuisine.
Will you have time to visit Milwaukee or Chicago after Kohler?
I want to visit the surrounding areas. I’ve been to Madison, so I want to do other things. I want to see things that I haven’t seen. I’ve been to Chicago many times. I love Chicago. It’s freezing during the winter, though. I have great memories in Chicago. I love it, especially the hot dog stands.
What do you love outside of cooking?
I do a lot of photography. That’s what I wanted to be — a photographer. I love sports. I love reading. I love traveling. I love to get to know new cultures. I love to spend a lot of time with my kids. They’re 10 years old. I’m kind of looking at the world through their eyes, but I’m also giving them my experiences. Actually, I took them to Brittany, [France,] the other day — where my mom passed away — for the first time, and it was just beautiful.
I’m an advocate for the next generation. I love to be a part of it and learn. I’m a seeker of my own truth. I love to look at new things. I think we have forgotten about how beautiful this world is. I always say to young people to just go out there, travel and learn as much as you can because that’s going to open your mind. Me being older, it’s still opening my mind.
