After 35 years, French chef duo return home to Pakistan

Sylvestre, Jonathan Wahid talk about their journey to the top of culinary arts

ISLAMABAD: For the chef duo of Sylvestre and Jonathan Wahid, cooking is not only about the ingredients but also about immersing themselves in the art while keeping traditions alive.

The two Michelin star-winning chefs are considered to be among the rising stars of modern French cooking. But their unassuming looks conceal their deep ties to Pakistan and how their hearts skip a beat whenever they get some bad news from their ancestral village.

The brothers were originally born in Kohat before moving to France with their family in the early 1980s. They are currently visiting Islamabad – on their first trip to the country of their birth after 35 years on the invitation of Serena Hotels and the embassy of France. They spoke at a quaint gathering of journalists in the capital on Sunday.



“I have come to Pakistan after 35 years. Thirty five years is a long time,” said Sylvestre, the older of the two brothers.

Sylvestre said he was nine when he first arrived in France.

“I have childhood memories of Kohat and when we passed by Islamabad,” the chef said. Their father Abdul Wahid, was a chef as well. After relocating to France along with his family, Wahid had joined the French army and rose to manage the officer’s mess. When he put his children into a French school, he gave them French names. Hence Shahzad became Sylvestre and Jawad became Jonathan.

Following in the footsteps of their father, the two brothers got into cooking.

Sylvestre, who has twice been awarded two stars by the Michelin guide in 2005 and again in 2016 – the latter for his new restaurant in Paris, started by working with Thierry Marx at Le Strato in Courchevel (Cheval Blanc) in Nîmes in 1990. Working his way up, he landed in the kitchen of renowned French chef Alain Ducasse at 59 Poincare and Plaza Athénée. But it was at the Oustau de la Baumanière where he got his first Michelin star.

On the other hand, Jonathan is a grand pastry chef. Having worked for six years at the Ritz in Paris, he was named the Champion of France for Desserts in 2005. He went on to open his own restaurant in the south of France which received a Michelin star in the 2017 guide for its ‘Auberge de la Reine Jeanne’.



The brothers, though, said that despite their accomplishments – achieved in the depths of some of the world's busiest and stressful kitchens – they never forgot their ties to their home in Pakistan.

“Our mother did not want us not to forget our language and spoke with us in Urdu,” Jonathan said in basic Urdu. He added that though they had moved to France, their family kept some of their traditions alive.

“We are a close family, just like it is over here,” the pastry chef said.

When asked whether they face any discrimination for being Muslims or not being from France, Sylvestre said they were too focused on their job to pay attention to such issues.

Asked whether incidents in Pakistan worried them, Sylvestre replied in the affirmative.  “Yes, of course. Because I was born here and have family here,” he said.

Asked if he believes all the information about Pakistan, he said that there were two ways to find out.

“Watch TV or go to a place yourself. I prefer going to a country to explore it.”

Talking about the difference between Pakistani and French food, the duo said each had its attributes.

“To take time and love what you are doing is important in French dining … cooking is also an art. It has a spirit,” said Sylvestre. Jonathan added that taste was quite important in French gastronomy.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 8^th, 2017.