Jonas Bolle: Calm and Passion
I had a wonderful time listening to Jonas Bolle. It was a serene conversation at the Café de l’Amitié, a place he speaks of with a pride that shone through our entire conversation. The young chef reflects on how far he and his partners and staff have come. From the architecture to the dishes, from the wines to the details of the back-of-house: this bistro tells the story of their shared experiences. “Even though I’d always dreamed of a bistro, I couldn’t have imagined this one.”
“Testings”
People are quick to get excited about a grand opening. They tend to overlook what it costs—intellectually and emotionally. Jonas talks about the exhaustion, the daily adjustments, and—right from the start—the changes within the team. He also reflects on that long wait before he could finally start cooking in his own kitchen. As delays piled up, he came up with four to six menus, taking the seasons through their cycles on paper before lighting the flames under the stoves. After all, how can you strike the right note without yet knowing the vibe of the place?
Preliminary tastings (known as “testings”) sometimes only deepened his doubts. By constantly adjusting an ingredient, tweaking the seasoning, and gathering feedback, his initial intuition risked fading away. But Jonas needs that initial spark. A sauce taking shape, a ingredient catching his eye, a conversation with his sous chef: creative ideas usually strike right in the middle of a busy service. “Why not pair this devil’s sauce with a monkfish tail?” A spoonful: he tastes it, experiments, and his cooking moves forward.
Alpine Cuisine
That’s when the young man regains his focus. He speaks openly about his attention disorder—those thoughts that crisscross and collide until they become difficult to untangle. In the kitchen, he says, those difficulties fade away. He needs a skillet on the stove, something in the oven, and work on his cutting board. Several simultaneous actions help him regain his focus. The movement gives him a sense of balance, within which his ideas then find their way.
Her cuisine, however, has a distinct character. Jonas describes it as Alpine. It draws on her childhood memories, her grandmother’s cooking, and the generosity of a Swiss-German inn. It moves between Switzerland, France, and Italy, with hints of Austrian and German influences. A seasoning from elsewhere can help maintain balance, provided it serves this identity—a connection to his roots. Perhaps, above all, he wants the dish to reflect who he is.
The first summer menus allowed him to fully take charge of his kitchen and rediscover long-awaited ingredients. He extends this same attention to those who work with him. In the middle of a service, Jonas takes ten seconds to ask his team if the pace is right, if they can speed things up, or if more covers can be added. He’s aware of the orders piling up, but knows he isn’t always in the shoes of the person at the helm. He observes, exchanges ideas, and praises a technique that’s become more precise. His high standards are also conveyed through these words.
The Weight of the Test
The Café de l’Amitié fosters the same sense of trust. Discreet communication, a website stripped down to the essentials, and minimal activity on social media. The team wants to devote its energy to the kitchen, the dining experience, and the wine cellar. It’s also learning to accept that it can’t please everyone. Jonas would like people to come to his place for dinner just to have a good time. The word “try out” bothers him because it implies a judgment before the experience has even taken place.
As winter approaches, I sense that he’s at peace. The arrival of his new second-in-command, Rémi Gauthier, and the solutions they’ve found week after week have contributed to this. Every day, he’s growing more comfortable in his many roles as chef, restaurateur, and business leader. His concern can be summed up in a few words: staying the course. Still being here in ten years, continuing to do his job well. Listening to him, I understand how much he wants to make this place his own, to feel it come alive and watch it grow. Jonas Bolle is truly here… fully and completely.
