French porcelain manufacturer Michel Bernardaud collaborates with Le Grand Contrôle
Every detail at Le Grand Contrôle has been carefully considered. When you visit us, you’ll discover that each dish is served in porcelain tableware from La Maison Bernardaud, a French company renowned for its exceptional craftsmanship.
You are a great purveyor of French luxury and the decorative arts. What do these demands actually involve?
We are heirs to the French legacy of porcelain. One of the last in the world to bear a family name, our firm has been run for the past 160 years by the Bernardaud family. Transmission of our expertise, the key to the firm’s prosperity, will lie at the core of the anniversary we will celebrate next year.
Has your contribution to La Table du Chef Alain Ducasse at Le Grand Contrôle invited you to reinvent the tradition of the "Grand Siècle"?
We have been working with Chef Alain Ducasse across the world for many years. Joining him at the Château de Versailles with Airelles seemed self-evident, as we share the same level of high demands. One of our subsidiaries, L’Ancienne Manufacture Royale, created by Louis XVI’s brother, is the matriarch of Limoges Porcelain. It reproduces identical pieces from the 18th and 19th centuries, whose originals are exhibited in famous museums. This ensures full immersion for the guests.
La Maison Bernardaud relies on respect for ancestral know-how while pursuing constant innovation. How do you maintain a balance?
Porcelain is one of man’s first manufacturing activities. Since our creation, we have constantly reinvented this ancient material while building privileged ties with contemporary designers and benefitting from new technologies. Our workshops thus produce new forms, colours etc.
In what way does your tableware impact the setting?
Thanks to firms like Bernardaud, Airelles has succeeded in preserving the soul of Le Grand Contrôle. Working with such prestigious partners who share our values creates a wonderful synergy. I am very proud of this and often see us as “the gang of do-gooders.”
