In the Baux-de-Provence valley, a chef attracts both the cameras and gourmets. At Oustau de Baumanière, a historic Relais et Châteaux house, Glenn Viel leads the way with a three-star Michelin restaurant while multiplying projects, from the vegetable garden to TV sets. And there, a new frozen adventure invites itself into the Provençal setting.
Behind this hyperactivity, the chef remains firmly attached to his stronghold of Les Baux, where he has been cooking since 2015 and won the third star in 2020 which made him the youngest three-star chef in France. Between the announced handover of Jean-André Charial at the end of the year and the opening of his first ice cream shop in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, his daily life takes a very particular turn.
Glenn Viel, the three-star from Baux-de-Provence
Born in 1980 in Versailles, trained in major Parisian houses such as Le Meurice and Plaza Athénée, Glenn Viel held chef positions at Peron in Marseille then at Kilimanjaro in Courchevel, where he obtained two stars in 2013, before joining Baumanière. He took charge of Oustau on March 6, 2015, in the heart of the Alpilles, and established a very direct southern cuisine, centered on the product.
On January 27, 2020, the Michelin Guide gave Oustau its third star and distinguished the responsible approach of the chef, who was also crowned Chef of the Year 2020 before being made a knight of the Legion of Honor in 2023. Enlarged vegetable garden, beehives, educational farm, homemade fertilizer, “seasoning stones” to limit salt: in Les Baux, his universe combines high gastronomy, sustainability and local artisans, under the look of Jean-André Charial who is about to hand over.
Very produced and very personal southern cuisine
Food & Sens describes him as a “transmitter of knowledge” and a maker of beautiful stories. He himself cites his models: , explains Glenn Viel to Food & Sens. His cuisine recounts this dual heritage, while anchoring itself in the landscapes of Les Baux and the seasons of its vegetable garden.
His signature dishes assume this bias: Water, at the center of cooking, remains his obsession:
From Top Chef to the Minot glacier, a life between Baux and Saint-Rémy
His media coverage exploded with the show, of which he became a juror from 2022, without leaving the kitchens of Baux-de-Provence. Off duty, he maintains a simple daily life: for Food & Sens, he says he likes And when he dines alone, he is content to
On August 1, 2026, he inaugurated Minot, an artisanal ice cream parlor in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, with his pastry chef partner Brandon Dehan. Only eight flavors, vanilla, chocolate, yogurt, pistachio, hazelnut, strawberry, apricot and lemon olive oil, fruits “picked at the right time” and carefully chosen milk, for a scoop at 3.90 euros up to a half-liter at 17 euros. , explains Brandon Dehan to Le Figaro, cited by Gala.fr. All in the spirit of “Children’s dreams, grown-up memories”, with a sauce hidden at the bottom of the cone which extends, in an iced version, the high standards worked every day at Baumanière.
Where to taste Glenn Viel’s cuisine in Les Baux-de-Provence?
At the three-starred Oustau restaurant in Baumanière, in the Baux-de-Provence valley.
What is the concept of Glenn Viel’s Minot Glacier?
A small boutique in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, eight readable perfumes, careful ingredients and affordable prices.
What is the link between Glenn Viel and the show Top Chef?
He has participated in the M6 show as a member of the jury since season 13, broadcast from 2022.
