I just had my birthday, my beautiful girlfriend surprised me with the most amazing birthday gift by taking me to Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons which is a luxury historic manor house owned by Raymond Blanc and the restaurant has 2 Michelin Stars.
So what is the Nth degree and how does it help my mindset?
Let me tell you a bit more about this amazing manor house.
The restaurant is famous for having one of the most well developed vegetable gardens and we were taken around by one of the main gardeners and shown their entire growing areas. It was evident from the way she talked about it all that she was very passionate about what she did there. It was also abundantly clear that there had been an incredible amount of thought and effort gone into the plantings and vegetables.
There were pumpkin patches with nasturtium flowers in between because the nasturtiums attract the right bug eating insects to help keep the pumpkins pest free. There were vegetables and herbs from all around the world, from grains out of south America, to herbaceous leaves from Japan.
In the green houses they were growing micro-herbs. These are normal herbs which are harvested within 2-3 weeks of growth so that the few mini leaves on them are packed with the most flavour. We were allowed to taste them so we picked some little leaves and it was stunning the amount of taste there was.
Round another corner there was a newly created mushroom farm with all sorts of mediums and watering systems to create the perfect environment for growing the various species of fungi. It was just the most incredible experience to understand how far the thought process goes into the final dish.
Everything has been meticulously thought out. Candice used the word “ridiculous” to describe it all, and I utterly agree. When we eventually made it back to the restaurant to finally start our 7 course taster menu, it was evident right from the start that every detail had been considered.
This is what I mean by taking things to the Nth Degree. I realised there and was totally inspired by all this because I understood something epic, that pure excellence and the utmost success comes from living in that space where you take your thoughts, ideas and actions, to the Nth Degree.
That’s taking things over the top OTT, and beyond that to create an experience of your service that is profound and inspirational. The best of the best in the world understand this, and they keep improving on this.
Raymond Blanc certainly does, and out of this location in Le Manoir, the restaurant kitchen has trained 28 other Michelin starred chefs. That’s all I’ll leave you with today, remember that excellence is not just being good or great at what you do, it’s being exceptional to the Nth degree. If you can do that an maintain it, you’ll achieve the success you’ve always dreamed of.
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