Legendary French chef Jacques Pépin made a special appearance in New Haven last week, sharing stories from his extraordinary career.
A culinary icon, Pépin has written over 30 books and is decorated with several prestigious awards, including 16 James Beard Awards and France’s Légion d’Honneur. He was also the personal chef for three French presidents.
He’s known for co-starring with Julia Child on their Emmy-winning PBS series, Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home.
“My father was a cabinetmaker, my mother was a cook. So my choice in life was easy, either a cook or a cabinetmaker,” Pépin said. “I like the kitchen better.”
With decades of experience under his belt, Pépin isn’t shy joking about how long he’s been around.
“Someone introduced me not long ago and said, ‘That man was chef to three French presidents and the three of them are dead,’ Pépin said.
The live Q&A was part of the 30th International Festival of Arts & Ideas, a New Haven tradition celebrating creativity and innovation. This year, the theme was “legacy, resilience & community.”
The festival connects New Haven’s cultural traditions with international talent, honoring voices like Pépin’s that have shaped food, storytelling, and education across generations.
The discussion was moderated by Dr. Khalilah L. Brown-Dean, an award‑winning scholar, author, and civic leader who directs the Allbritton Center at Wesleyan University.
Pepin spoke about his philosophy of love and respect in the art of cooking.
“You know, if you have people coming to my house, I don’t ask them if they are Republican or Democrat, I open a bottle of wine, and we start having a glass of wine and talking about food and sitting down and eating together. That breaks the wall, you know.”
He also emphasized the art of simplicity, saying that cooking doesn’t have to be exclusive to complicated meals.
“At the beginning of the pandemic a few years ago, my daughter Claudine said, ‘Why don’t you cook something off of Facebook, a recipe that takes 4-5 minutes, with what you have in your refrigerator? '” Pépin said. “We did like 10 a day. Those are very simple. It has a place in cooking, just as something more complicated. I like to do a little bit of everything.”
Through Facebook and social media, Pépin was able to enter people’s homes to share recipes and techniques and help them feel connected.
“I think that the pandemic brought a lot of people into the kitchen to cook together, be together,” he said.
He also said that technique and repetition are important for a chef, but they’re not everything.
“When you cook, you have to give some of yourself,” he said.
He also discussed his work through his own nonprofit, the Jacques Pépin Foundation, which supports free culinary education and job training programs for individuals facing barriers such as homelessness, incarceration, and substance abuse.
“It has been quite rewarding,” Pépin said.
Founded by Pépin and his family, the nonprofit provides grants, instructional videos, and teaching materials to help individuals gain professional skills and rebuild their lives through cooking.
“There is no political application in cooking. We have a logo here on our shirt that says, ‘Everyone looks the same in the eye of the stove.’ Everyone is equal in the kitchen,” he said.
Pépin and Julia Child also co-founded a culinary initiative at Boston University that grew into two major programs: the Professional Culinary Arts Certificate (1989) and the Master’s in Gastronomy (1991). Their efforts helped legitimize academic food studies in higher education.
“It’s still going on now,” Pépin said.
After the show, guests enjoyed a tasting with bites prepared by Sanctuary Kitchen, a New Haven-based program that helps refugee and immigrant women by teaching cooking skills and creating jobs through food.
Pépin is turning 90 this year and celebrating with a bang. The “90/90 Dinner Series” is his foundation’s biggest fundraising initiative ever.
It’s a national campaign to honor Pépin’s 90th birthday through a year-long series of culinary events spanning the fall of 2024 through December 2025.
It’s ninety ticketed benefit dinners nationwide, each hosted by a renowned chef or restaurant. The event also includes home-cooked events and virtual celebrations, where individuals and families are encouraged to host their own Pépin-inspired gatherings.
Proceeds support the foundation’s mission to improve lives through culinary education.
