These meetings are exclusive to the members, but two events per year are open to friends and spouses, the Spring Dinner and the Ceremony for the General Assembly.
Every year, the Club des Cent crowns two chefs and offers them a certificate, considered quite prestigious in the world of gastronomy.
It was founded by journalist Louis Forest, with women not admitted at the annual gala dinner.
Recruitment balances professions and ages of men, including various chief executive officers and businessmen, and lawyers and journalists such as Philippe Bouvard and Jean Tulard.
The qualities necessary are both human and gastronomic; seemingly insignificant questions must be taken seriously—one might be asked where to stop for lunch when in Nice, and thorough knowledge of the Michelin Guide is a must.