It's a daunting task that would intimidate even the most seasoned of chefs: Design the menu and cook up the feast for some 500 celebrity guests for the July 2 nuptials of Prince Albert of Monaco and bride-to-be Charlene Wittstock. The "second" Royal Wedding of the year promises to draw the crowds for free concerts (The Eagles! Jean Michel Jarre!) and a reception on Monte Carlo's port that's open to "all Monegasque citizens, residents, persons working in the Principality and people from neighbouring communities."
Alain Ducasse himself is a Monegasque citizen; his restaurant at Monte-Carlo’s Hotel de Paris has three Michelin stars. The celebrity chef—whose global empire of restaurants boasts 19 Michelin stars—has designed a three-course feast for the wedding that sources local ingredients. In an interview with the Associated Press in Paris on June 8, Ducasse explained how all ingredients will come from a six-mile radius from Monaco. "Prince Albert is very interested in protecting the Mediterranean, its flora and its fauna. It's something of an obsession," Ducasse said. "We decided to do something sustainable, local and ethical. It's going to be like the essence of the Mediterranean Sea, its tastes, its smells and its colors ... fresh line-caught fish, garden vegetables and fruits for dessert.”
Appearing on the French television show Le Grand Journal yesterday evening, Ducasse explained that the vegetables are being grown on the Prince's farm, and the fish will be line-caught in a small geographic area off the shores of Monaco. Even the honey will come from Monte Carlo’s urban beehives. This event will be the first marriage of a Monegasque monarch since 1956, when Prince Rainier III tied the knot with Hollywood star Grace Kelly.