[4] As criticism continued to pour in and while the media speculated about a possible future loss of a Michelin star, he died by suicide by self-inflicted gunshot without giving any explanation.

When Verger bought the formerly prestigious La Côte d'Or of Saulieu in 1975, he installed Loiseau as chef and soon stood aside to allow him to develop a highly personal style of cuisine.

His fanatical attention to detail, frenetic work ethic, and discerning palate, propelled him to the top of his profession, and earned him a knowledgeable and loyal, but unforgiving and demanding clientele.

In the late 1990s, a new form of Asian-inspired "fusion cuisine" swept France, catering to an international corporate class and pleasing trend-driven "foodies" (a neologism of the movement), which Loiseau resisted.

[14] Loiseau had made a life's ambition of becoming a three-star chef, a goal which had required 17 years of hard work at La Côte d'Or to achieve.