Anne Coruble pastry Chef at The Peninsula Paris wins coveted Lebey award

Inventive creation featuring Tahitian vanilla and tobacco leaf is crowned 2022’s “Best Dessert”

Since 2013, Guide Lebey, the premier guide to Parisian restaurateurs and chefs, has recognised the city’s most exquisite dishes with its annual Prix de l’Excellence Gastronomique. At this year’s awards event on 3 October, the prestigious honour for 2022’s Best Dessert was presented to Anne Coruble, Head Pastry Chef at The Peninsula Paris.

Chef Coruble’s award-winning dessert – a creation that inventively pairs the flavours of Tahitian vanilla and tobacco leaf – was first debuted at L’Oiseau Blanc, The Peninsula Paris’s Michelin-starred rooftop restaurant, in 2021. Composed of a crystalised tobacco leaf filled with a creamy, vanilla emulsion, enlivened by a fleur-de-sel foam and served with vanilla caviar, smoked-tobacco ice cream, and a black cardamom crisp, the dessert has won acclaim from both restaurant critics and diners.

“I am thrilled to have received this illustrious award, especially for a dessert that may at first seem counterintuitive,” said Chef Coruble. “While its combination of elements is indeed unusual, as the Lebey award judges have recognised, together they create an exquisite balance of flavours and textures.”

The Peninsula Paris’s General Manager, Vincent Pimont, expressed equal delight in the award. “From the moment I first tasted one of Anne’s desserts, I was struck by her formidable skill and her audacity with flavour combinations. These are strengths she has continually shared with her entire team at The Peninsula Paris – and so this award is a triumph for all of us.”