"A little balm for the heart" after the anguish of a diagnosis of possible breast cancer: for nine years, star chefs have served a gastronomic meal to patients who have just undergone surgery in a hospital in Aix-en-Provence during the "Pink October" operation.
Pink champagne, Provencal tomato with a heart of ratatouille, duck and Liège chocolate parmentier with biscuit powder and whipped cream. This Tuesday, it is Pierre Reboul, Michelin star chef at the Chateau de la Pioline in Aix, who is treating us.
Once a week, a dozen patients and their possible companions are served an exceptional dinner in their room at the Hôpital Prive de Provence. On each tray, in addition to the champagne and food, a pink rose.
All "based on fresh products" and presented in jars, because of the preparation "in kitchens that are different from ours, but that doesn't change the idea of the work," explains the chef. "We're going to bring them a bubble of pleasure, the idea of eating good products and starting their healing in the best possible way."
"It's a real pleasure. It's a bit of a balm to the heart after being anxious and stressed for three weeks from the time of the MRI until the time of the operation," agrees Fabienne Sanchez, a 65-year-old retiree, raising her glass with her partner, just a few hours after the removal of a papilloma from her right breast.
"I've already eaten in very good restaurants, but starred, it's the first time. It's going to be a great experience!" enthuses Paola Pontacq, a 19-year-old midwifery student, who has just had a cyst removed from her left breast.
"Food in clinics, in hospitals, is often subject to criticism," explains Dr. Veronique Vaini Cowen, who launched the "chefs' dinner" operation in the establishment nine years ago. "We know in cancerology that eating well, eating organic, eating local, is important and it even reduces the risk of recurrence."
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