They say you should never trust a skinny chef, but how about an ultra-buff one? Enter Olivier Elzer, chef of restaurants L’Envol and Clarence, who is 108kg of pure muscle. Clad in a black tee and skin-tight leggings at his local Muay Thai gym, Kwoon – where we were given a taste of his rigorous workout regime ahead of his new keto menu at Clarence – he looks more like a member of the Marvel franchise than he does a Michelin-starred chef.
“I’d always been active as a kid and played a lot of professional handball and football growing up,” said Elzer. But after starting his culinary career at the age of 18, long hours in the kitchen left little time for training and over the years, “my work had to become my sport”. In 2009, Elzer moved to Hong Kong to work as head chef at Pierre (by Pierre Gagnaire) and then at L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon Hong Kong, gaining himself several Michelin stars in the process but also some unwanted weight.
Showing a before-and-after photo as proof, Elzer said: “I gained so much weight due to all the tastings and trainings, and decided that I couldn’t let myself down further.” In 2013, he restarted his health journey with an intense workout schedule that he still keeps up with today – six days a week, often two workouts a day (from weight lifting and Muay Thai to triathlon training), and switching things up every month or so to keep things interesting.