Marco Fadiga is new Executive Chef for Moët & Chandon

Moët & Chandon has named Bologna’s Marco Fadiga as its new Executive Chef, replacing Bernard Dance who is retiring this year.

The appointment follows a global competition run by Moët & Chandon to find the House’s new Culinary Ambassador and Executive Chef. Launched earlier this year, the contest whittled applicants from around the world down to four highly qualified semi-finalists, who were invited to Epernay for a face-to-face kitchen battle. Fadiga was voted the victor by a panel of judges which included Moët & Chandon’s Chef de Cave Benoît Gouez, three-time Michelin-starred Chef and Moët & Chandon partner Yannick Alléno, Bernard Dance and fellow Executive Chef Pascal Tingaud.

Marco Fadiga is an Italian Chef whose expertise spans more than 20 years, with experience at one- and two- Michelin-starred restaurants across Europe including La Toree de’ Galluzzi in Bologna, and Michel Rostang and Ledoyen in Paris. He was Chef-owner of Marco Fadiga Bistro in Bologna from 2003 to 2014 and was most recently Chef-owner of Noir restaurant, also in Bologna.

In his new role, Marco Fadiga will work with the Moët & Chandon team of winemakers to design dishes to match the Maison’s Champagnes and be amongst the first to taste each new Vintage Cuvée. Based at Trianon on the Avenue de Champagne and Château de Saran amongst the House’s vineyards, Fadiga will also travel the world as a Moët & Chandon Culinary Ambassador.

“This has been an incredible experience, and I look forward to combining and exploring my Italian creativity and my love of French culture,” says Fadiga, whose winning dish was a saffron risotto with fried courgette flower, crispy bacon and scallop matched to the Moët & Chandon Grand Vintage 2008. “Saffron is not only a spice, but an important part of the flower which is why I wanted to match it with the floral bouquet of the Champagne. To find the acidity necessary to match that of the wine, I used beurre blanc – a traditional French sauce recipe. The scallop gave an iodine note that was complemented by the bacon’s saltiness. Finally, the fried courgette flower gave a perfect green touch to reflect the herbaceous note of the Cuvée.”

“In this competition, I was looking for the perfect balance, and Marco’s dishes reflected his culinary expertise as well as an innate understanding of Moët & Chandon Champagnes,” adds Benoît Gouez.