From Luxury Marketing Manager to Parisian Barbecue Master
It’s been a year since Parisian pit boss, Thomas Abramowicz, opened the first authentic smokehouse in Paris. Today, he is the undisputed barbecue king of France. His restaurant, The Beast, refers to Abramowicz's massive six-square meter, two-ton, oak-fired smoker. The included menu items would make any Texan feel at home: beef brisket, baby back ribs, pulled pork and barbecued chicken are just some of the specialties. Desserts include Southern delicacies such as pecan and key lime pie. The Beast also sports Paris’s largest selections of bourbons and rye whiskeys, imported straight from Kentucky. However, if you're worried about a restaurant overrun by Americans, fear not, because Parisians have been quickly discovering what Texas cuisine has to offer and they're raving about it.
Thomas’s story, however, does not follow the typical path of a barbecue aficionado. His story actually feels more like a Hollywood script than reality. It was only two years ago Abramowicz was working in New York as a luxury marketing brand manager at LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy), earning great money and attending some of the most exclusive parties around the world. And yet, he gave it all up to cook barbeque in Paris, France.
Abramowicz agreed to sit down over a glass of bourbon and recount his incredible story.
Image Credit: Gabriela Milene Wilson
Tell me about your life before “The Beast,” before Texas.
I’m from Paris originally, attended business school where I studied marketing. After my master’s degree I joined LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy) specifically working for the spirits branch.
So, the MH part of LVMH?
Yeah, and I really happened to like it. I was always gravitating towards the food industry. I was the Assistant Brand Manager for Dom Pérignon and one of my jobs was to work with chefs to do food pairings. Each chef would come up with a dish that would enhance a specific note of the personality of the champagne.
But you were never a chef, right?
Nope. I always loved to cook, but I never worked in a restaurant nor had any professional cooking experience. I have to say though, I was raised the right way at the right place, and my parents were foodies. We would go to all kinds of different restaurants.
When was the first time you ever tried barbeque, or should I say, authentic barbeque?
About seven years ago. I was working in New York as an Assistant Brand Manager for Hennessy. My roommate happened to be from Texas and he really introduced me to something I had never heard of.
Image Credit: Gabriela Milene Wilson
Ok, so what happened?
Anyways, he invited me to Thanksgiving with his family. It was my first time in Texas and I discovered Texan hospitality. He lived in a town called Blanco, near Austin. He took me to a place called "Salt Lick" BBQ.
Something happened deep inside of me. Like—really.
You mean in your soul?
Everything! It was basically a full experience. The smell when you get in, the look, the décor, the fact that there were only community tables with 25 people sharing plates, everything! I had never seen anything like that before. It was completely new to me. The smell! The wood fire pit, the smoke, the taste, the texture, the seasonings, the meats, everything! I mean, I was a meat eater, but never in my life! That was seven years ago. I was young but I knew that something was happening there.
What happened next?
Well, you know, I went on with my marketing career. But that place had stayed in my mind—I had seen the light. After seven years I decided that I was done working in front of a computer. I had the dream job—Global Senior Brand Manager for Belvedere. But I was not happy at all. I was traveling the world, working for a cool brand, sponsoring the best parties you’ll ever see. Incredible parties.
I don’t understand the problem.
I was done! Because most of the time I was sitting in front of a computer working on Excel spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations. It was time to move on. The idea was already in my mind. I had just turned 30 and I thought, “Hey, if I don’t do it now, I’m never going to do it.” And when I turn 60, I’ll look back and regret it. So, for sure—lets do it—fuck it.
Image Credit: Gabriela Milene Wilson
There’s a famous quote from Davy Crockett before he left Tennessee to go to Texas and later fight at the Alamo: “You can go to hell—I’m going to Texas” I feel like that is applicable for you.
That was it! That was it! But I had to find a way.
How did you make it back?
I was already looking into the opportunities of opening a BBQ. I had bought a book called, The Prophets of Smoked Meat, written by Daniel Vaughn who is the BBQ editor of Texas Monthly magazine. He writes only about BBQ. I had seen some pictures of him on the Internet and while in New York having lunch with my friend I saw him. It was two days before the Big Apple BBQ Fest. I said to my friend, “That’s Danny Vaughn! Here’s his book.” He [Vaughn] went to the bathroom and while waiting in line I introduced myself and explained to him that I have a project and that if I do it, I want to do it right. I told him “I want to be trained properly, I want to respect the tradition.” I asked for his help. He loved the project. He probably thought I was insane.
Probably. A little bit—yeah.
But, he liked me! He asked me if I was staying for the BBQ festival and told me he would introduce me to Mueller.
Wayne Mueller. Of the famous Louie Mueller BBQ?
Yes. I met him and things went well. A few months later I rented a car and drove alone to Texas. I still had Vaughn’s book, which listed around, like, 400 BBQ joints. So, I was like, “Where am I going to go today?” I’d open the map and say, “OK—let’s go here.” I drove around all over Texas working and learning from different BBQ joints. I would just say, “Hey, I’m French. Can I help you? Do you need anything? Can I stay here a couple of days doing the dishwashing or cleaning?”
Image Credit: Gabriela Milene Wilson
And your parents?
Oh, they got scared. They thought, “We have a son, he’s got a career. He makes good money, has a dream job in New York, and now he’s quitting everything to go smoke meat—in Paris.” But, they understood. I had their full support. And once a project is started, you have to finish—you have to.
You don’t think about it. You just do it.
What was the biggest culture shock (good or bad) that you ever experienced in Texas—Something that shocked you—as a Parisian?
Honestly. It was a very positive shock—the hospitality. We [the French] only hear about: George Bush, the NRA, the guns, the shootings everywhere—and fat people. Oh, and the Cowboys!
But that’s all true.
I’m not saying that it doesn’t exist, it does. I saw it myself. But nobody tells you about how friendly people are, how welcoming people are. Some of them hosted me with their families. I was a stranger to them, no one knew me. They all welcomed me, offered me a bed, food, everything. This was a very positive shock for me.
Image Credit: Gabriela Milene Wilson
Were you ever afraid that BBQ wasn’t going to catch on with Parisians?
You don’t think about failing. If you do, you don’t do it. If you have a doubt—the slightest doubt—you don’t quit your whole career and life to do this. You just hang on and keep working. I was sure it would work because we [the French] eat a lot of meat. It’s not like I’m introducing a new way of consuming—just a way of cooking. But people love meat in France. I did some studies and we are some of the biggest meat eaters in Europe, per capita. Huge.
And have you had to adapt in order to suit Parisian’s tastes?
Yeah, there are a lot of sides I found in Texas that are really thick, really heavy. They wouldn’t work here. But, also the seasoning of the meats, they’re very very peppery. I was trained in Central Texas where it was salt and pepper only, which is what we do here. But, I had to put a little less pepper. Combined with the already strong flavor of the smoke, it was too strong. You don’t want to kill the French palate.
Tell me about the Bourbon bar.
I found that it was working great together with the meat. It has the same taste profile: very mellow, very rich. Before I went to Texas I made a stop in Kentucky; for 10 days I toured around the state visiting all the distilleries. This is a niche. Nobody was big about bourbon in France. It’s getting bigger now, but we have the biggest Bourbon selection in France. And it goes perfect with the barbecue. Worst-case scenario: it looks good on the wall. But, people love it.
Image Credit: Gabriela Milene Wilson
What’s your favorite bourbon with, let’s say, the beef brisket?
Beef brisket is pretty rich. You want something bold. My personal preference would be Thomas Handy Rye Whisky straight from the barrel. This is one of my favorites. It’s hard to drink, 68% [alcohol by volume] so, 136 proof.
Last question: What is the future of The Beast?
I don’t think there will be 20 Beasts. That’s not the objective. I like the fact that it’s pretty exclusive. It’s a tiny restaurant and we’re the only ones doing it this way. It requires a lot of time, a lot of control on the meats. So if I had 20 restaurants I would lose some of the authenticity. The future of The Beast is more in events and catering. We do a lot of public events, festivals. At first, it was hard to manage both that and the restaurant, but now we’re equipped.
No matter what happens, I’ll be here.
27 rue Meslay
75003 Paris
