As one of the world's top chefs, Alain Ducasse needs little introduction. Over the past two decades, few people have done more to develop and spread the gospel of French haute cuisine.
Having attained Michelin three-star status by the age of just 33, he later became the first chef to run two three-star restaurants simultaneously. In 2001, he boosted that total to nine, with his eponymous New York restaurant, Alain Ducasse at the Essex House. In recent years he has parlayed his culinary genius into global gastronomic pre-eminence, with operations as far afield as Hong Kong, Lebanon, Tunisia and even Mauritius.
He has also been busy making his mark in Tokyo. Last year saw the opening of not one but two Ducasse restaurants -- the elegant, luxurious Beige, at the apex of the Chanel Building in Ginza; and Benoit, in Aoyama, serving his chic, refined take on Mediterranean bistro cuisine.