We would not have bet on them straight away.
Sarah and Mohamed, the two finalists for the 12th season of “Top Chef”, were not necessarily those we saw go by in the final.
Lack of confidence on the side of Sarah, thinking herself less good for not having gone through big houses ... We felt in Mohamed a great technical mastery, but an inner brake.
And yet, over the course of the competition, they have revealed themselves, carrying out progressing courses, in daring and brilliance, which is greeted by this final recorded at the George V, in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, and broadcast this Wednesday June 9 on M6.
Here they are at the start, each in their own line.
Surprised to be in the final?
SARAH MAINGUY.
Rather yes.
I admit that I did not expect it at all.
Surprise and very happy ...
MOHAMED CHEIKH.
Absolutely!
I have been following the program for a long time and never would have believed one day to be part of it, let alone to reach the end.
When I arrived, I said to my parents:
I'm going to do three or four weeks, it will be good already
.
Getting there is incredible.
Is it a bit of a victory for the outsiders?
SM
(Laughs)
I don't know, maybe… It's true that Momo and I were not the ones people would have bet on.
MC
Bluntly.
This is proof that, in life, you have to be wary of sleeping water and that nothing is impossible.
This is what nourishes me on a daily basis: you shouldn't trust either appearances or experiences.
All roads lead to Rome.
As Chef Glenn Viel says, whether you go through the front door or the window, you come home anyway.
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In this environment, is it harder to find a place for yourself when you are a woman or when you are of North African origin?
SM
I want to say no, even if that sometimes changes a few things.
You may need to know how to yell a little louder, take a little more space and assert yourself, not let yourself be walked on.
But I think it's a bit the same for a man or a woman.
MC
You have to work twice as hard, but I said it before, I don't want to make bread on this again.
After a while, it's good… I'm French, I love this country and my fellow citizens.
To read also "Top Chef": an ephemeral restaurant in Paris for Mohamed, a second place for Sarah in Nantes
Do you have the impression that we are waiting for you at the turn?
SM
I would say yes and no.
I think the pressure is still fairly shared.
Afterwards, I already put the pressure on myself, so I try not to think too much about what other people think.
MC
Of course.
A bit like someone who has just had a star: we all want to go and see what it is worth, if it is legitimate.
I know that, at home, people will be more critical than elsewhere, that they will watch me closely and follow what I do.
Yes, it is a certainty.
What did you come looking for at "Top Chef"?
SM
A sort of click, both on my attitude, on my lack of confidence: I was trying to assert myself more.
And then learn, have a view of other horizons that I could not have had without
Top Chef
.
MC
I first came to have fun, and then also to see where I stood.
I've always been told that what I do is right, and I always feel like I'm told it to make me happy.
I wanted to know if this was real, if I really had value and if I could confront emerging chefs of my generation.
It is linked to my early career: I was told that I had no place in the kitchen ...
What did you find there?
SM
I became aware of certain things, in particular that I had to stop worrying about myself, that sometimes it is not necessary to think too much, nor to fear the eyes of others, nor even that which one may have. on oneself, which is sometimes the worst, and forge ahead.
I think I came out of it grown up.
MC
Trust, recognition.
Pleasure, open-mindedness at the culinary level, and surpassing oneself.
What did your head of brigade bring you?
SM
I was lucky enough to have two.
Security and confidence for Hélène Darroze while Paul Pairet almost gave me permission to let my grain of madness express itself, to push my limits.
MC
Lots of serenity.
Hélène Darroze was very good advice, supported me and allowed me to stay the course and the mental.
She pushed me out of my comfort zone.
At one point, she said to me:
That's what you're doing, but you have to go and look for more, otherwise you won't go any further
.
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What do you think of each other?
SM
Momo is very technical, trained in great places, he is a formidable candidate.
On a personal level, I get on very well with him, he gave me very good advice at the beginning, we were in the same team, we helped each other.
It's a great pleasure to be in the final with him.
MC
Sarah is an excellent cook, very creative with a lot of originality.
At her age, she is lucky to have already discovered her cooking style.
She is reckless and does not give up, despite everything, because it was not easy for her either, we have often discussed it.
Humanly, she's a pretty person.
A little pinch in the heart of having to face you?
SM
I would say that's the game
(laughs)
.
MC
As I say on the show: I take it as a friendly match.
In the end, there is a winner, but I don't see any adversity.
Read alsoSuccess of "Top Chef", return of the home-made ... why cooking fascinates the French
What will make the difference?
SM
Difficult to say ... Those who will judge are not leaders.
So, should you offer a menu that pleases as many people as possible or, on the contrary, not sell your soul to the devil and cook your own until the end ... I told myself that I shouldn't change , even if it does not happen ...
MC
You have to get the food out on time, whether it is hot, good, quite original, but that as many people like it as possible.
There are a lot of parameters ...
For you, the after-Top Chef is ...
SM
The return to normal life, to real life, because casually, we were in a bit of a bubble.
And then, above all, the return to the restaurant
(Editor's note: Noise, his table in Nantes),
which reopens this Wednesday!
MC
Happiness, love and fresh water
(laughs)
.
Continue to go all out, have fun, meet lots of people, share and continue to enjoy myself in this area.
Be more confident and try, one day, perhaps, to become a great leader.
And by the way, did you win?
SM
But I can't tell you, me
(laughs)
.
MC
(Silence)
We don't know.
