Jessica Préalpato

The Climb

Formal pastry training at Hotel School of Biarritz gave the work an early technical frame before Jessica Préalpato spent time on the retail side as cashier / shop assistant at parents' patisserie. Production discipline followed through the pastry clerk role at Les frères Ibarboure in French Basque Country, then a Paris palace register at Alain Ducasse au Plaza Athénée in Paris, where Jessica Préalpato became Pastry Chef from 2015. The method of controlled sweetness and product-led construction later carried into London, Chelsea, through the Pastry Chef residency / afternoon tea creator role Jessica Préalpato took at Carlton Tower Jumeirah.

Today

Acidity, alcohol, and shifting texture are worked into the structure of the dessert rather than added as garnish. “I like to use vinegar, alcohol… the goal is that the customer does not get “bored” and that each bite brings something new, a new emotion.” In the pastry of Jessica Préalpato, sweetness is held in tension with interruption: vinegar, fermentation or spirit when the product calls for it, and a plate designed to change from bite to bite.

Signature

The named pastry work includes Strawberries and soya, Peaches and nectarines from Lizac and frozen sweet clover, Quinoa pudding, natural citrus and mint, and Alain Ducasse chocolate, toasted cereals and single malt.

In Their Words “Desseralité is a different way of thinking based on the product; respect for the product, the season, and the producer. The goal is to sublimate the product, to put its taste and rawness forward.” “Desseralité is a mixture of dessert and naturalité. And this word perfectly describes my pastry. These are desserts with a raw visual; on the plate, everything must have a meaning.”

Recognition

Recognition for this pastry language includes Pastry Chef of the Year (2020) and The World’s Best Pastry Chef (2019), both credited to Jessica Préalpato.