Executive Chef Stéphane Beaucamp Blends French Influences with Local Inspirations to Cook Up Healthy Creations at Lake Austin Spa Resort

AUSTIN, TX - "People sometimes ask me," says Stéphane Beaucamp, executive chef at the award-winning Lake Austin Spa Resort in Austin, Texas, "how a French chef can cook healthy food. Isn't it all butter and cream? they ask." The handsome young culinary master smiles broadly. "I remind them that the man who really invented 'spa cuisine' in the first place was Michel Guérard, one of the founders of nouvelle cuisine and one of the greatest French chefs of our time."

Chef Beaucamp — who inherited the Lake Austin Spa Resort kitchens from acclaimed chef Terry Conlan, recently retired after more than two decades — cooked early in his career at a famous French spa himself: Enghien-les-Bains, just north of Paris. He quickly adds, though, that he doesn't consider the culinary wonders he turns out daily at Lake Austin to be diet food. "I am really just cooking the kind of things I have always liked to eat myself, very clean, light and delicious. When people hear the words 'spa cuisine' — especially men — they think, 'Oh, I'm going to have to eat steamed vegetables and steamed fish, nothing with any flavor'. That isn't how I cook at all."

Though he brings long experience in both classical French fare and contemporary international cuisine to Lake Austin, Chef Beaucamp believes that the secret of good food with lots of flavor begins with using the best possible ingredients and allowing their goodness to shine through. "Okay," he says, "so I cut out the butter and the cream and control portion size, but after that I am cooking a varied, interesting cuisine, with lots of grains and greens, grass-fed meats, fish from sustainable sources, organic fruits and vegetables — including many vegetables and herbs harvested right here from the resort’s organic gardens. So not so many calories but a lot of flavor." To show his appreciation of the people who grow and produce his raw materials, Chef Beaucamp includes the names of partner farms and artisans on his menus.

"I think offering a variety of choices is very important, too," he adds. "I want to have so many possibilities on the regular menu that nobody feels that they have to ask for special treatment. If they are gluten-free or on a low-sodium diet or anything like that, they shouldn't feel deprived in any way. They'll find plenty to eat. I don't want people to come here and feel as if they're on a diet. I want them to sit down and taste my food and think 'This is one of the best meals I’ve ever had'."

ABOUT LAKE AUSTIN SPA RESORT

Nestled along the shores of scenic Lake Austin in the beautiful Texas Hill Country, Lake Austin Spa Resort offers guests the sanctuary of a world-class spa and the warmth of a best friend’s lake house. Lake Austin Spa Resort offers all-inclusive vacation packages, which include accommodations in one of 40 charming lakeside guest rooms, three gourmet meals daily, indoor and outdoor fitness activities and classes, and a selection of spa and body treatments.

The resort has received numerous awards from prestigious national travel and spa magazines since its multi-million dollar renovation and expansion in 2004.  Condé Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure, Allure, the Zagat Survey, Health, Garden Design, SpaFinder Lifestyle, Spa Magazine and American Airlines’ Celebrated Living magazine have recently honored Lake Austin Spa Resort as one of the best in the country and in the world.

For additional information and reservations, call 800-847-5637, or visit www.lakeaustin.com.