Born in Halluin, near Lille in northern France, Etienne Leroy discovered his vocation at an early age.

When he had finished at secondary school, Etienne went to spend two months with one of his uncles, who was pastry chef in Canada. The following year he enrolled at a further education college specializing in hotel industry trades, in Catering School of Orchies, to do a patisserie vocational qualification, with a chocolate-making component. He did his work placements with Dominique Benoît in Lille.

Having completed his qualification, he went to join Stéphane Glacier, Best Pastry Craftsman, for 2 years as part of his professional technical qualification. He then went to work alongside Emmanuel Ryon, Best Ice Crean Craftsman, who was at Café Pouchkine in Paris. Etienne held the position of Chocolate and Decor Manager for 3 years. After a period at the Catering School in Lausanne, where he had the opportunity to work with Best Pastry Craftsman Franck Michel, he joined the team at Hôtel du Cap Eden-Roc in Antibes as Sous-Chef in 2014. In 2017, Etienne became World Pastry Champion with an original creation on a rock’n’roll theme.

Today Etienne is developing training in France and internationally. He loves to work with dried fruit, and hazelnuts and pecan nuts as they create instant indulgence and texture. He pays particular attention to simple, uncomplicated flavours and appreciates the freshness that fruit creates in a dessert.