Join a 2-hour cooking class in France taught by former Michelin chef Guillaume Brisard in La Baule. Learn French cuisine, market logic, and dine your creations.
La Baule, on the Atlantic coast of Loire-Atlantique, offers more than just seaside charm—it hosts a refined culinary experience in France led by renowned chef Guillaume Brisard. This cooking class invites food lovers and travel gourmets alike to immerse themselves in French cooking lessons, guided by a chef who has earned Michelin distinction. Over a two-hour atelier (with optional market visit and lunch), participants explore local, seasonal ingredients, master professional techniques, and taste the results in convivial company. Whether you are seeking a memorable cooking holiday or simply a hands-on learn French cuisine experience, this workshop delivers an authentic touch of French gastronomy in a friendly and instructive setting.
Quick Overview
- City: La Baule-Escoublac (Loire-Atlantique)
- Region: Pays de la Loire
- Price: €95 (class only); €125 (class + lunch); €155 (market + class + lunch)
- Duration of class: ~2 hours (up to 2h30 with market option)
- Conditions & restrictions: up to ~12 participants, age minimum ~16 years (ask about dietary restrictions)
- Provider: Bris’Art Culinaire / Chef Guillaume Brisard
The Provider: Bris’Art Culinaire and Guillaume Brisard
The cooking class is operated by Bris’Art Culinaire, the culinary venture of Guillaume Brisard, based at 39 avenue Louis Lajarrige, La Baule. Bris’Art offers not only cooking workshops but also chef-at-home services and private catering across La Baule, Nantes, Pornic, and adjacent areas.
On his official site, Bris’Art presents the culinary studio and restaurant under one roof: cooking classes, corporates events, and gastronomic dining.
Bookings on third-party platforms also advertise the experience: “cooking lessons with an exceptional chef at La Baule (44)” offered by Guillaume Brisard, 2-hour workshop for up to 12 participants.
As chef-at-home, Brisard also lists his services on Take a Chef, highlighting that he launched this entrepreneurial activity in 2020 while continuing to host French cooking lessons locally.
Chef Profile: Guillaume Brisard
Guillaume Brisard is a seasoned chef whose career spans restaurants, gastronomic innovation, and private events. He earned his Michelin star in 2011 at Le Fort de l’Océan in Le Croisic—a distinction he retained for a period—demonstrating sustained culinary excellence.
Originally trained in a variety of regional kitchens, Brisard has worked in establishments such as Maison Delphin (Suce-sur-Erdre), La Cavalière (Le Lavandou), and Mortagne-sur-Sèvre.
His cuisine is often described as “marine in connotation, without claiming allegiance to one school,” centered on contrast, freshness, and emotional resonance.
In his current venture, Bris’Art Culinaire, he maintains a philosophy of locality, seasonality, and authenticity. He shares his tricks and techniques generously in his workshops, always mindful of both tradition and innovation.
His engaging style is praised in guest reviews, such as on TripAdvisor, highlighting pedagogical skills, friendly presence, and culinary insight.
Format of the Cooking Class Experience
The core cooking class in France is structured in a relaxed but focused format designed to appeal to amateur cooks and enthusiasts alike. The workshop begins with a brief discussion of the menu over coffee—usually featuring sea-inspired or land-and-sea themes. Then, under the guidance of Chef Brisard, participants cocreate a three-course menu: starter, main, and dessert.
During the class, attendees rotate through cooking stations, working on fish, meat, sauce, pastry, and plating stages. Techniques taught include unilaterally searing fish, sauce reduction, creative garnishing, balancing flavors, and dessert assembly. The chef interjects tips, shortcuts, and precision tricks as participants proceed step by step.
If you opt for the market + cooking version (available at ~€155), the experience begins with a guided visit to the local market: meeting producers, selecting vegetables, seafood or meat, and discussing seasonal sourcing. After the market stroll, the group returns to the kitchen for ~2h cooking.
At the end, participants sit down to dine the dishes they helped prepare in a convivial table d’hôte setting. The chef typically refines plating or final sauces just before service, offering an elevated presentation. The guest-prepared creations thus become a full culinary experience enjoyed on site. In lunch-included packages, no extra guest is needed (though an additional guest +€35 is an optional add-on).
Throughout the session, everyone receives technical recipe sheets (fiches techniques) to reproduce the dishes later at home—ensuring the workshop is not merely entertainment, but a learn French cuisine toolkit.
Why This Workshop Stands Out
What elevates this culinary experience in France beyond a generic cooking demonstration is the direct access to a Michelin-level chef, in an intimate group context, using local seasonal produce and real kitchen tools. Chef Brisard’s hands-on pedagogy ensures that each participant is actively engaged rather than passive observer.
The optional market visit adds regional authenticity: shopping with the chef, conversing with vendors, and discovering hidden ingredients sets this apart from conventional cooking retreats. Incorporating that step transforms the class into a full gastronomic journey, from market bench to plated dish.
Moreover, the workshop is conducted in a genuine professional kitchen connected to Bris’Art Culinaire, not a tourist kitchen — participants experience the atmosphere of a working restaurant. The fact that one dines on their own creations, refined and presented by the chef, gives a sense of achievement and immediacy.
For the international audience, this offers both a hands-on French cooking lesson and a window into French culinary culture, technique, ingredients, and aesthetics. It is ideally suited for food travelers, budding chefs, or anyone seeking a gourmet memory rather than a passive tasting.
In sum, this experience merges gastronomic tourism, technical instruction, and convivial sharing—embodying what a cooking class in France should truly be.
Back to find your Cooking Class in France