Family
Antoine Ménard’s Bright Haussmannian Apartment: A Cozy Family-Only Retreat
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Guillaume and Antoine Ménard, Marcel 9 years and a half, and Romy 2 months old
When you arrive at the entrance to this building in western Paris, you start imagining the interior you'll be welcomed into. Will it be bright and cheerful, like the extravagant, Italian-accented Gigi restaurants in Paris and Ramatuelle? Excessively opulent, with lavish 19th-century influences, as at Maison Revka, Maxim's or the latest Baronne, located in the Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild? Soberly elegant, in the style of Monsieur Bleu at the Palais de Tokyo or Girafe, with a view of the Eiffel Tower? Or will we snuggle up in country chic, like the Vaux de Cernay near Paris? All these establishments have one thing in common: they are owned and often invented by a fast-growing and successful group, Paris Society. One is surprised when one enters the apartment of the member of General Management, who is also responsible for creating the brand's concepts. That means every restaurant, every hotel, every nightclub. Before the extravagant decor marked by the best interior designers of the moment, before the successful merchandising products sold by each establishment, before the choice of building – often historic – to house the prestigious addresses to which everyone will flock, there's the concept. Antoine Ménard and Laurent de Gourcuff have come up with the concept. We're surprised, then, by the sobriety of the premises. In this elegant Haussmann apartment, parquet flooring, moldings and a fireplace envelop us in a rather soothing atmosphere from the moment we arrive. In his busy professional life, Antoine Ménard brings these concepts from the Thousand and One Nights to life, but he loves to be with his husband and children in a clear, uncluttered daily routine, interspersed with their photographic favorites, pieces of furniture designed by them and then made to measure, and a table football that sets the tone for this tender, happy family life right from the start.
Location
Paris
Author
Elsa Cau
Photos and videos
Valerio Geraci
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TSF
Antoine, Guillaume, who are you?
Antoine & Guillaume
We’re a fairly ordinary couple—quite different from one another yet highly complementary. Above all, we’re a family now, and we love sharing a passion for the finer things in life. We alternate between the fast-paced rhythm of our Parisian life and moments of pause at our countryside home and in the mountains—our little bubble of fresh air.
TSF
Antoine, what's your background ?
Antoine
I started working in the bar at Lucien Barrière in La Baule when I was 16. I went on to do a master's degree in hospitality and tourism management. But above all, my life has been punctuated by professional experiences and encounters. I've had some really great encounters with entrepreneurs who have made an impact on me, who have trusted me and helped us to grow together. I would like to mention three great encounters in particular, with: Isidore Partouche (nicknamed the King of Casinos, editor's note), Alain Ducasse and, of course, Laurent de Gourcuff. And then myself, an entrepreneurial side I didn't know I had, from 2010 and into 2016 when I had my own auditing and consulting firm. I also had my own events company and restaurants. I probably wanted to prove to myself that I was capable of setting up businesses. As a consultant, I've been able to support a lot of entrepreneurs, hoteliers and restaurateurs in the creation of their projects, and helping them with openings and setting up their premises. And in the process of course, meeting a lot of architects, decorators and designers. Then Laurent de Gourcuff trusted me to put creativity and the customer experience at the heart of the organization of his system. Laurent is a visionary who has always used location as an entry point in their development. He wanted crazy, unique places where you could feel an emotion, either through the architecture, the view, the terrace or the location. I brought the "content" part of these projects to the table. What do we put inside this place, which is already strong, to be able to create an immersive story, to make it a real destination and perhaps an icon – which we've succeeded in doing with some of our brands...
TSF
It seems to me that work is a very important part of your life.
Antoine
I'm really focused on my work and a workaholic. It's always been an important entry point in my life. A true leitmotif.
TSF
Guillaume, for his part, has chosen to be a father and homemaker.
Antoine
It wasn't a choice made to last. But when Marcel turned two, I had to do a lot of work for my own companies, and he made the decision to offer me this comfort: to be able to concentrate fully on the job. It turns out that he's a great daddy and that I wouldn't be able to devote as much time and energy to our children. We've found that balance, and really enjoy missing each other and getting together regularly. A crazy life at a hundred miles an hour for my work and a family cocoon that Guillaume takes care of and in which I love to recharge my batteries as much as possible.
TSF
What environment did you grow up in and how did it influence your tastes?
Antoine
I grew up on the west coast of France, with part of my family in Loire-Atlantique and part in Morbihan, Brittany. I've always lived in houses facing the ocean. I was very inspired by my grandfather's house at Armor Plage, which was totally 1970s-style, with very light oak, very honey, and the smells that go with it. After all, we weren't a family with a great taste in art, decoration or furniture. But we did have strong partiality for gardens, on the other hand. I always saw my mother gardening. That's what I'm trying to recreate in Normandy. But it was my professional encounters that opened my eyes to the world of art, architecture and design. These were late discoveries for me.
TSF
Your job title is "Chief Creative Officer". Does this mean Artistic Director for Paris Society?
Antoine
For that aspect, we work with Cordelia de Castellane. Working in a close tandem. That doesn't make me an artistic director, because my job includes an operational vision and the whole development of our brands in France and abroad. This includes subjects such as sponsorship, partnerships, retail and tableware, which we develop for each location. We add to this the question of creating a story in a location, and imagining a relevant customer experience according to the local market, from the decor to the plate, and from the beverage to the service. So it's much broader than art direction.
TSF
How do these places come into being?
Antoine
The way we create our places is quite unique. It all starts with a story and a narrative. Take Gigi, for example. I often say that Gigi isn't a restaurant, it's the restaurant of an Italian called Gigi, a 65-year-old Milanese aesthete and art lover who's been living in Paris for 20 years! So I wrote 200 pages of Gigi's story, what he likes, where he went to the beach when he was little... It's this narrative that allows us to create a real universe. After that, my job is to bring together the various people working on the project: an interior architect, a graphic designer, Cordélia de Castelanne for the art direction, a stylist, a chef, a communications director, an entertainment director for the music, a "nose" with whom to create the olfactory signature, and so on. I tell them this story and then make sure that each of them, according to their area of expertise, tells the same story, so that something perfectly coherent emerges. And that, in my opinion, is what really sets us apart from other groups. There are plenty of other groups in the hotel and catering industry who claim they do the same thing. It's not enough to work with a decorator and stick them together to a chef without any specific connection to create a restaurant. It lacks the very story they're trying to tell. Sometimes there's no connection. That doesn't mean it's not beautiful, it doesn't mean it's not good, but there's no connection. You wonder why the little spoon is like that in this story, why the name, why the branding, why the light design, etc. My job is to ensure that there's a real narrative that all the teams, in the project and then in operational phases, know, understand and relate to in their job.
TSF
In keeping with the Costes tradition in Paris. Yet you feel you've brought something new to the industry.
Antoine
Jean-Louis Costes is a friend whom I respect enormously in the business. He put me up for three years at the Costes Hotel! The group brought design and the importance of decor to the industry. For our part, we've added a 360° component and, in particular, a new stage to the rocket: entertainment. But, yes, we're all part of the same dynamic and we've worked together and with others to change the face of hospitality in Paris. Twenty years ago, we used to think that to see cool new concepts, you had to go to London or New York. Because in Paris, it was very 'chef, gastronomy, bistro, brasserie'. So we all brought these new visions to the table. And sometimes we revived something that already existed, as we did with Paris Society for Maxim's. The essence of the place was there, but we had to work on the confusion left by the passage of time. We spent several hundred hours in the archives, looking at the typography of menus from the past. Maxim's was a big flea market, and when we took it over, there were 25 different models of chairs floating around! We chose one and had it identically reproduced. The same goes for the table lamps. We re-electrified everything, the lights were really like high beams (laughs). And when the customers came back, they said "How cool: you didn't touch anything." That was the goal. I'm not a great believer in revolutions. Maxim's, in the early 20th century, was that fashionable, eccentric restaurant. We didn't invent anything. We're remaking the restaurant as it was 100 years ago. What Paris was like 100 years ago.
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TSF
Tell us about the history of this apartment.
Antoine
We had two criteria: a typical Haussmann apartment and a neighborhood. We'd come back to Paris after living in the suburbs in Puteaux! Guillaume and I have been together for twenty years, and married for ten. We lived in a very festive, central Paris, near the Bourse. Then we opted for the garden, the dog and the child just outside Paris. But unlike our friends who continue to drift away from the capital, we were keen to get back to it. Getting to know a bit more "family-friendly" Paris! The 16th arrondissement lent itself well to this. We were looking for a real neighborhood in which to live, since Marcel would be going to school here. And then we found this apartment, which had already been completely refurbished. So we were mainly involved in the furniture side of things, designing a large part of it - something I never do in the restaurants we design for Paris Society, because I work with decorators and designers for everything!
TSF
How would you describe the style of your home? I'm surprised by how uncluttered it is, compared to the places I know and that you helped create...
Antoine
It's also a question of balance with Guillaume. I like very busy worlds, whereas Guillaume likes much more minimalist worlds. We tried to meet halfway. I may be in control of my professional life, but Guillaume is the boss at home (laughs). So I naturally let him run free to follow his own tastes. As for me, I'm pretty classic and not very trendy or modern. In fact, this is a common thread running through all our projects. They are difficult to date, because we like places that age well. And for that, it's not a question of being fashionable. At home, my passion for seating classics can be seen in our Platner bouclette armchairs and Saarinen dining room chairs.
TSF
What did you design and then have made yourselves?
Antoine
The large oak and blond cane console table, for example, behind the sofa. All the lamps: floor lamps, brass sconces. For these, I was inspired by the Maison Charles.
TSF
Tell us about a piece of furniture in your home that you particularly like.
Antoine
The Diesel & Moroso sofa. We wanted a classic Haussmann-style apartment that wasn't an apartment for entertaining. We don't entertain much at home, only our very close circle. It really is our family home. The sofa is the centerpiece! We had in mind something to sit on that would allow us to take long naps as a family, spend time together in front of the fireplace on Sundays, talk about our lives and have a drink. Our sofa measures 1.40m [4.6'] deep and 3.4m [11'] long. The whole family spends a lot of time on it!
TSF
So you think of your home as very intimate, where you don't entertain much.
Antoine
Rarely. It's our family cocoon. Besides, we love going out. We tend to spend most of our life in restaurants. When you're with other people, you don't know how to limit yourself. It's hard to have a couple of friends over and have dinner for four or six. It doesn't take long for it to turn into fifteen people (laughs). So the apartment doesn't lend itself to it and we're often outside. Here, we can recharge our batteries and live among ourselves, especially with the arrival of our little one, who makes us feel even more at home in this cocoon.
TSF
How would you describe your style?
Antoine
I don't know if I have my own style, but I had fun in the apartment. I'm lucky enough to be able to enjoy my job and work on stories and creations that are all completely different. Gigi in the Italian Riviera style with Hugo Toro, Bambini with Friedman & Versace which is another Italy, that of Gabriella Crespi, of the colorful, folkloric 1970s, Maison Revka in a rather "garciesque" style (for decorator Jacques Garcia, editor's note) with Laleh Amir Assefi... I have fun exploring all these worlds. Guillaume and I also own a country house that we searched for ten years and bought last year. This former ribbon factory had been closed since 1840. We're probably in for a decade of work, which is fine by us (laughs). I'm a fan of the ongoing construction work. I've still got a lot to play with!
TSF
Has the arrival of children changed your vision of interiors?
Antoine
No. On the contrary, we went for ivory-colored bouclette armchairs and a light-colored sofa, with marble tables to make sure you hurt your head when you fell (laughs). We've chosen to educate children in this way. And it's funny because we realize that Marcel is beginning to have an eye and an opinion on the subject. I think it's rather lucky for them, sometimes unlucky for some of the things that fly, but that's life.
TSF
And did Marcel have any say in how the apartment was decorated?
Antoine
Of course, for his room, and generally speaking, we try to involve him in all important family choices. The choice of his little sister's name, for example.
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I'm not a great believer in revolutions. Maxim's, in the early 20th century, was that fashionable, eccentric restaurant. We didn't invent anything. We're remaking the restaurant as it was 100 years ago. What Paris was like 100 years ago.
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TSF
What's new at Paris Society: are you planning to expand even further?
Antoine
For us, tomorrow's development will be international. Of the 20 locations Laurent de Gourcuff had identified in Paris, we now own 16. The Salomon de Rothschild Hotel, where we've just opened a restaurant, was eight years in the making. In early 2025, Minim's reopened next door to Maxim's as Bistrot Minim's. But the bulk of our expansion will be international. The plan was to create brands with strong content so that they could be exported. We have twenty or so locations to open in 2025 and 2026 with Ennismore and in collaboration with Rikas.
TSF
What are your favorite local restaurants?
Antoine
Conticini pâtisserie (42 Rue de l'Annonciation, Paris 16th arr.), for their sugar brioche! Chez Dino (8 Chau. de la Muette, Paris 16th arr.), Marcel's favorite eatery. Casa Lopez, because I'm a fan of their designs and Pierre's books. La Grande Epicerie (80 rue de Passy Paris 16th arr.) because it's a constant source of wonder. Le Théâtre de Passy (95 Rue de Passy, Paris 16th arr.) because it's part of the life of the neighborhood and we love going there during the week with Guillaume.
TSF
What do you think of The Socialite Family?
Antoine
I love The Socialite Family. I love this community, this look at the aesthetics of interiors. There, we discover singular universes and personalities. It's both intimate and inspiring to enter into the daily lives of these families, to discover and share passions and good restaurants.
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