i. Biography
At Regain, the cooking works from product, season, and a clear tolerance for contrast. In Sarah Chougnet-Strudel’s hands, plant-based plates, offal, pomme dauphine, and chocolate soufflé can share the same menu logic without being forced into one style. Heat is used with placement: spices and chiles sharpen and brighten rather than cover. Natural wines sit inside the restaurant’s operating language, close to the sourcing and the food.
The Trajectory
French technical training gives a cook vocabulary before it gives them freedom. At École Ferrandi Paris, Sarah Chougnet-Strudel built that base in precision, discipline, and the working grammar of French cooking, then carried it through kitchens in Paris, Bordeaux, and Honfleur: cuisinier at Restaurant Monsieur Lancaster in Paris, apprentie at L'Astrance in Paris, cuisinier at L'Observatoire du Gabriel in Bordeaux, and stagiaire pâtisserie at Restaurant SaQuaNa in Honfleur. Station work forms judgment through repetition. Across those kitchens, Chougnet-Strudel’s craft was pressured from several sides: sauce and garnish, savory structure, pâtisserie exactitude, dining-room composure, and the pace of service. The line was not a single stylistic apprenticeship; it was an accumulation of working conditions that built range. Teaching French cuisine requires a different command of technique: what has become reflex has to be named, sequenced, and corrected. As Professeure de cuisine française at École partenaire Ferrandi in Singapour (until 2016), Chougnet-Strudel moved to that side of the craft before returning to service as Second de cuisine at Pascade in Paris (2016–2017), Demi-Chef de partie at Four Seasons / La Dame de Pic in Londres (2017–2018), Chef de partie at Hélène Darroze at The Connaught in Londres (2017–2017), and sous-chef at The Greenhouse in London W1J 5NY. The later résumé widened the field between France and the United Kingdom, teaching and execution, classical kitchens and wine-led hospitality. After Demi-Chef de partie at Le George in Paris (2018–2019), Chougnet-Strudel became chef at Antidote Wine Bar & Wine Shop in Londres (2019–2021). Today, Sarah is chef-propriétaire of Regain (since 2021), chef of Au Trou Gascon (since 2024), and Executive Chef of Antidote.
The Current Chapter
Seasonal cooking at Regain is built less around a model than around response: what the producer brings, what the moment can carry, and what the plate needs. Since 2021, Chougnet-Strudel has run the Marseille restaurant as chef-owner, pairing rigorous sourcing with selected natural wines and a style that does not lean on Michelin-starred codes to prove its discipline. The control is in the editing, not in display. Range is part of the method. A delicate pomme dauphine, chocolate soufflé, bold offal, Asian influences, and plant-based creations are not treated as separate identities; in Chougnet-Strudel’s cooking, they are handled as available registers. The through-line is contrast kept legible: comfort with force, earthiness with brightness, producer-led restraint with aromatic lift. Spices and chiles from around the world function as tools of adjustment. They warm, cut, lengthen, or focus a plate without moving the cooking away from its base. That use of heat and aroma shows a cook working from accumulated structure while choosing immediacy over formula. The current practice is spread across three cities.
Recognition
Sarah Chougnet-Strudel has received Gault&Millau Jeune Talent PACA (2022). Sarah's honors include Jeune Talent PACA (2022).
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Sarah
What is Sarah Chougnet-Strudel's current position?
Sarah Chougnet-Strudel is chef at Antidote — Wine Bar.
Where did Sarah Chougnet-Strudel train or study?
Sarah Chougnet-Strudel trained at École Ferrandi Paris.
What recognition has Sarah Chougnet-Strudel received?
Jeune Talent PACA (2022).
