THR O UGH THE LENS

A photo-heavy profile of two legendary chocolatiers and pastry chefs // By

ACF Pastry Chef Robert Wemischner

Of all the ingredients in the sweet kitchen, none compares to chocolate as the ultimate but fickle muse for the pastry chef’s creative side. Pursuing somewhat divergent paths, here are two stories of chocolate’s lure as played out by two masters, ACF Chef Amaury Guichon and Chef Kriss Harvey. It’s arguable that genius in the wider world of the sweet kitchen comes in many different forms, but what geniuses have in common is an unending curiosity about ingredients and their potential.

Amaury Guichon

Born in Cannes, Chef Guichon, founder and CEO of Pastry Academy by Amaury Guichon in Las Vegas, pursued his basic training for two years in Switzerland and then started working at a young age on the savory side of the kitchen. Following a stint at Lenôtre, a legendary pastry shop in Paris, followed by an executive chef position there and appearances on a television show, he was ready to buff up his resume and moved to Las Vegas. Working for three years at the Aria Resort & Casino, his dream was to offer classes internationally. “I knew then that I had to have my own kitchen to take it to the next level,” Chef Guichon says. Finding the right partner three years ago led to the fulfillment of that dream with the founding of the Pastry Academy, a place where he ties together his love for education with his dedication to perfection.

“I believe in the primacy of flavor,” says Chef Guichon, who uses Cacao Barry chocolate exclusively. “People tend to overcomplicate taste nowadays. Instead, in my pastry work, I like simple tastes, the purity of a fruit’s flavor enhanced through interesting textures. It’s all about the flavor. I design my molded renditions of everyday objects around flavor. And in those, the thickness of the chocolate has to be just right since what’s inside is as, if not more, important as the thrilling accuracy of my renditions, whether a designer handbag, a grandfather’s clock, a wooden soldier, a dragon or a dinosaur.”

Using a large variety of molds, both silicone and polycarbonate, and creating his own, Chef Guichon is only limited by his imagination, reproducing these objects and more (see his weekly videos on Instagram that showcase in breathtaking detail every available skill and technique). “Combining blown sugar and tempered chocolate to create artistic showpieces is the ultimate challenge,” he says. “Every creation has its own difficulty, but in my versions, the dimension of taste is never shortchanged. I used to be trapped in a creative cage but now getting better at what I do, I can edit the videos and through them, open the possibility for others to do part of what I am doing. I always have a project in the works, a new thing every week which leads to sharing my passion with others.”

Although he cautions against looking too closely and too often at others’ work, he points to a hero and now a friend, Chef Christophe Michalak , the well-known Parisian pastry chef, formerly head of the sweets kitchen at the Hotel Plaza Athénée, about whom Chef Guichon says: “I owe him a lot. He opened my eyes to so much and championed me to further my career in many ways.”

Kriss Harvey

Based in Los Angeles, Chef Harvey began his career in top hotels and restaurants (Charlie Trotter’s in Chicago, for one) after taking classes at the Cacao Barry Chocolate Academy. Europe beckoned, and Chef Harvey got to fine-tune his knowledge of French pastry working with many of the key practitioners of the art. “I am now working with Puratos, who sells Belgium chocolate, and wish to put a stamp of true quality on affordable signature products like malt balls and chocolate-coated pretzels that are slated to sell at Costco.”

Going that route, Chef Harvey is committed to supporting cacao growers at origin to help raise their standard of living, no matter the venue or venture. With this commitment, he is moving confidently toward opening his own artisan store in early to mid-2023 with a well-focused product line using a range of distinctive chocolates. In his view, the use of one brand does not exclude enjoying using another since each has its own signature flavor profiles that lend themselves to different applications. “I love the fact that Felchlin, for one, traces every ingredient they use from milk powder in their milk chocolate to the growing of cane sugar back to the fields where it originates,” he says. “Keeping the new generation of cacao farmers engaged, it is incumbent on us as chocolatiers and end users that we ensure that they are being paid fairly for a product in high demand with a limited amount of cultivation worldwide.”

With great prime ingredients as a starting point, Chef Harvey stresses the importance of self-confidence in all who have collaborated with him or now take his popular immersion classes around the country. “I used to tell my staff at the hotels, ‘Be better than the other pastry people working around you, and you will go far,’” he says. “You don’t have to be innovative for innovation’s sake; just be good.”

When speaking about his overall style, he says, “I am a little oldfashioned, and in my bonbons, I veer from the trend of embellishing molded candies with bright colors. I am convinced that the ever more discerning public will embrace the flavors of pure chocolate not merely being beguiled by eye-catching color in the visuals. I contend that a well-made praline based on the proper roast of the nut — either almond or hazelnut — can’t be beat, and there is an audience for that kind of product.”