World's Best Chef Shot Himself Dead in His Swiss Home

How the renowned and award winning chef who won the World Best Chef award in December died in his Swiss home has been revealed in this tragic story.

World's Best Chef, Benoit Violier

 

A top chef has been found dead at his home in an apparent suicide just months after his restaurant was named the best in the world. Benoit Violier, 44, who ran the three Michelin Star Restaurant de l'Hotel de Ville in Switzerland, is thought to have shot himself with a shotgun, police said.

'Late in the afternoon [on Sunday], police... went to Crissier where they discovered at his home the body of Mr Benoit Violier,' the force said in a statement, adding that it appeared he had shot himself.

 

Police said an investigation had been opened into his death and said Violier's family had asked for privacy 'to be allowed to mourn in peace'. According to Swiss news site 24 heures, the chef was due to attend the launch of the new Michelin Guide in Paris on Monday.  A minute's silence was observed before the start of the Michelin Guide ceremony on Monday. The Swiss version of the guide had already been published and showed Violier had retained his stars. 

 

News of his death sparked a wave of sadness as contemporaries extolled the French-Swiss chef's talents. Restaurant de l'Hotel de Ville, in Crissier, near the southwestern Swiss city of Lausanne, was in December named the best of 1,000 top eateries across 48 countries ranked by France's 'La Liste'.

 

The gastronomic guide is the French foreign ministry's answer to the Britain-based World's 50 Best Restaurants. Celebrating the win, Violier said at the time: 'It's wonderful, it's exceptional for us. This ranking will only motivate our team more.'  Violier took over the reins at the restaurant with his wife Brigitte in 2012, following the retirement of his mentor Philippe Rochat, another towering figure in French cuisine. Rochat died after falling ill while cycling last year. 

 

Opened nearly 40 years ago, the restaurant offers menus ranging from 195 Swiss francs (£135) to 380 Swiss francs (£260). Born in the French coastal city of La Rochelle into a family of winemakers, Violier's career went from strength to strength over the years. He was named Chef of the Year in 2013 by the influential Gault & Millau guide, second only to the Michelin guide.

 

He was known to be a very jovial fellow

 

Known as a keen hunter, game was a mainstay in Violier's signature dishes and he was known for using local, seasonal products. He obtained Swiss nationality two years ago, according to Swiss daily Blick. Michelin-starred French chef Pierre Gagnaire was one of many of Violier's peers who expressed shock at his death late Sunday.

 

'My thoughts go out to Benoit Violier's family. Very sad news about an extremely talented chef,' he wrote on Twitter. Swiss chef Fredy Girardet, a friend of Violier and his wife who once ran the restaurant in Crissier, said he could 'see no motive for such an act'.

 

He told Tribune de Genève: 'He was a brilliant young man, with enormous talent and an impressive work potential. He gave the impression of being perfect. This news is so sad.' 

 

Paul Bocuse - dubbed the 'pope' of French cuisine - described Violier on Twitter as a 'great chef, great man, huge talent'. Star chef Jean Francois Piege, also of France, tweeted: 'An immense chef, an immense sadness, thoughts go out to his family and his team.'

 

Violier's death was not, however, the first suicide of a renowned French chef in recent years. In the darkest such episode, Bernard Loiseau apparently committed suicide in 2003 after the Gault & Millau guide lowered his restaurant's rating. Four Michelin three-star chefs, meanwhile, closed down their restaurants from 1996 to 2008.