When in Paris, Pierre Sauvage entertains in his apartment on the first floor of an 18-century townhouse (or hôtel particulier) on the Left Bank. It was a “coup de foudre” when he first visited the historic listed apartment which is accessed via a flight of stone steps, giving the impression guests are entering a chateau. The apartment spans 300 square metres and has lofty ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows and ornate panelling.

With the help of the architect Franz Potisek, who had already designed another apartment and the Giverny country house for Sauvage, he converted this space into a series of enormous rooms bathed in light. Far from overwhelming visitors, here the spirit of the Grand Siècle does quite the reverse. The classicism of the architecture is counterbalanced by a skilful combination of textures, materials, and objects: rugs by David Hicks, lacquered paneling here and there, and a mixture of furniture and objects from a variety of provenances and eras.

The dominant aesthetic embraces a feeling of freedom: there is no hierarchy between signed Louis XVI chairs or a bronze chandelier by Hervé Van der Straeten and a collection of Wedgwood. Everything obeys a single cardinal rule: that everyone should feel at their ease.

It is in the small sitting room, emptied of its sofas, that Pierre Sauvage sets a long table for Christmas dining flanked by 20 or so chairs hired to seat his guests, who range from six months to 90-years-old. The colour theme is a a traditional green and red. The table is covered with a bronze corduroy fabric: “For tablecloths I like to use offbeat things,” he explains, “I often choose bed throws or lengths of fabric.”

He always makes his preparations for Christmas well in advance, asking his Spanish glass suppliers to make carafes in the form of chubby Christmas trees, and commissioning pewter place mats and a hand-painted dinner service. “Being a good host means making your guests feel as comfortable as possible: seats should be comfortable, silverware should feel good to hold, plates should be generous, cotton napkins should be soft,” believes Sauvage.

When it is his turn to entertain for Christmas, Sauvage plans the feast like a true production number. From the quantities of lighted candles to the (Carrs) water biscuits brought back from London, from the traditional recipes that he adapts in his own way to better suit the tastes of his guests to the huge Christmas tree that he loves to festoon with a profusion of decorations, he leaves nothing to chance in his desire to
ensure that the sense of wonder he creates is complete. And the attention he devotes to his guests extends to the smallest details. As is traditional, every guest leaves with a gift from the table: this year, it’s a plate painted with their name.

Pierre’s Recipe for Dill-Cured Salmon

Ingredients (serves 6-8)

18 oz/500 g white sugar
8 oz/500 g salt
2 bunches dill
¬1 salmon fillet large enough for 6-8 portions, skin removed
¬1 glass red berries

FOR THE DILL AND MUSTARD SAUCE
1 small glass crème fraîche
1 small glass mustard
3-4 tbsp superfine sugar
1 cup chopped dill

Method
Mix the sugar, salt, and 1 bunch of dill, roughly chopped.
Spread half of this mixture over a sheet of plastic wrap, place the salmon on top, cover with the remainder of the mixture and seal tightly.
Put the salmon on a plate and leave in the refrigerator for 2 days.
Remove the plastic wrap and rinse the salmon under running water to remove the cure.
Arrange on a serving dish and decorate with red berries and dill sprigs.
Mix all the ingredients for the sauce and serve separately.

From: Be My Guest, text by Olivia Roland, Photography by Ambroise Tezenas, Flammarion.