NOT many Michelin-star chefs are as brutally honest about coveted Michelin stars as Marc Haeberlin, head chef of his family-run Auberge de L'Ill in Alsace.

Most chefs say the stars are acknowledgement of hard work, encouragement and inspiration to do better; they tend to dismiss the elements of pressure and status in the fiercely competitive field of creating superlative cuisine.

As for Haeberlin, whose father opened the restaurant and first earned the three stars in 1967, those emblems, though welcome, can also be a heavy burden. Pressure is intense.

"It's hard to maintain three stars. I put much effort into it," Haeberlin tells Shanghai Daily in a recent interview at the Park Hyatt Shanghai.

"But if one day I lose a star or those stars, I would commit hari-kiri (a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment)," he is quick to add.

"I hope not but you never know," says the 58-year-old Frenchman.

He claims there's no secret to retaining the stars, just the teamwork of the whole dedicated family, including his father, Paul Haeberlin, the legendary Michelin three-star chef who died five years ago and developed the restaurant in northeastern France. Marc Haeberlin's daughter is the cashier, his sister is in charge of the dining area and he, of course, is in charge of the kitchen.

Haeberlin, who operates one restaurant in France and two in Japan, was recently in Shanghai preparing a dinner for the annual gala "Masters of Food and Wine" held by Park Hyatt Shanghai on November 24.

He cooked his signature dishes showing his personal culinary style, including foie gras terrine and lobster with veal feet ragout and pearl barley.

Haeberlin describes his style as insistently and classically French, with a modern touch, which he describes as primarily presentation and precised cooking.

Cooks in Alsace have been making foie gras for more than a hundred years. "The recipe created by my father 60 years ago is one of the dishes that won him the third Michelin star in 1967," the chef says.

Foie gras is prepared differently in different seasons. Haeberlin usually slowly poaches it over low heat and adds the family's secret sauce with spices and alcohol for its distinctive flavor.

This is Haeberlin's second visit to China. Years ago he attended a gastronomy week in Hong Kong at the Mandarin Oriental. He's impressed by Chinese food, especially Peking roast duck and shark fin soup.

"Chinese cuisine, for me, is one of the finest in the world, at the same level as French cuisine. It brings me inspiration," the chef says.

At home he cooks wild duck Peking style, glazing it, cooking it with spices and serving it in slices with the skin.

However, he has no plans for a restaurant in China, but if he did, then Shanghai and Hong Kong would be his first choice, since a city must have a reputation as a food capital. He plans a second restaurant in France, opening next September.

Traveling brings him culinary inspiration; he loves visiting fresh markets to find new ingredients and spices and dining in local restaurants to enjoy new tastes.

His love of travel sets him apart from his father, who specialized in French cooking.

But the younger Haberlin has no intention of giving up tradition, but preserving it.

"Keeping a balance between tradition and modernity is not easy. For me, it's a kind of art," he says.

In addition to his father, the other influential chef in his life is Paul Bocuse, one of the most influential chefs in France who's now 86 years old. Last year he was honored by the Culinary Institute of America as the "Chef of the Century." Haeberlin calls him his "second father."

"Respect the produce, do not overcook it, do not use too much spice, do not overpower it, but advance it. That's what I learned from my father," he says. "For me, the first thing is to be like a farmer, knowing the quality of the produce, and then a chef."

When he was around 12 years old, Haeberlin started working with his father after school, doing the basics such as peeling vegetables and cleaning fish.

"My father also told me to check and taste everything in the kitchen," he recalls, saying his father was vigilant and rigorous, a perfectionist who considered any accident or unforeseen event "a nightmare."

The young Haeberlin once was called upon to prepare a dinner for 2,000 people on a cruise. One dish featured pigeon, but there was only enough pigeon for 1,000 people. He combed the vessel and found only cases of frozen chicken.

Fortunately, the 2,000 people were separated for two dinners at different times. "I served half pigeon and the other half chicken. I explained to the other 1,000 diners that there was a menu problem in which 'chicken' was mistakenly written as 'pigeon'," the chef recalls when asked about difficult or embarrassing moments.

Before inheriting his father's restaurant at age 36, Haeberlin studied at the Hotel School of Strasbourg, Alsace, learning restaurant service and management. He worked for Paul Bocuse for a long time.

"From him, I know how to be a chef full of heart. He said to me that if you want to be a chef, you need to love the guests coming to your restaurant," Haeberlin says.

"Although media plays key role in maintaining the reputation of a restaurant, for me, the guests are the king. Treating them well and making them happy are the first requirements."

Unlike some other Michelin three-star chefs such as Alain Ducasse and Jean-George Vongerichten who have opened many restaurants worldwide, Haeberlin has only one in France and two in Japan, run in cooperation with his Japanese friends.

"Keeping the Michelin stars is difficult. And I am a good chef in the kitchen but a very bad businessman," he says.

He plans to open a second, casual restaurant in Strasbourg with his son next September. He says it will be "free-style, with 160 seats and not very expensive."

When Haeberlin is not in the kitchen, he enjoys being outdoor. He also paints and races cars. "If I were not a chef," he muses, "I would either be a forest ranger taking care of wild animals, or a race car driver."