Björn Frantzén on the discipline, repetition, and raw materials behind three Michelin three-star restaurants—and why mastery begins with the hands. 

For Björn Frantzén, craftsmanship begins long before a dish reaches the table. It starts with focus, repetition, and the hands, the tools that turn raw ingredients, instinct, and experience into something spectacular. Now the only chef in the world operating three Michelin three-star restaurants simultaneously, Frantzén brings the same discipline to every detail: from the quality of an ingredient to the way an experience is shaped in time and place.

In this conversation, the acclaimed Swedish chef reflects on the discipline behind precision, the importance of quality at every stage, and the quiet routines that shape his creative process. From early morning runs to the role of seasonality, he speaks to the shared language of cooking and shirtmaking: material, skill, time, and the pursuit of a result that could not exist in quite the same way anywhere else.

At its highest level, he suggests, craftsmanship is not only about technique. It is about people working at the peak of their profession. And the difference that makes.

We arrived at Frantzén on a Monday, the day the chefs work through the menu for the week ahead. You might not expect Monday to be one of the busiest day of the week, but at this level, it is when ideas are tested, adjusted, and pushed closer to perfection. Behind the restaurant’s

striking calm, music played over the speakers as the chefs developed new dishes, watched each other closely, and repeated every step with measured attention. It was craftsmanship in practice: exacting, methodical, and never hurried.

“I need to get it down on a piece of paper and I need to draw it. So I actually have a plan when I start cooking.” – Björn Frantzèn on what it takes to create.

Nothing felt rushed, yet nothing was casual. Even a simple task carried the precision of a practiced gesture. The atmosphere was relaxed and cheerful, but the concentration never broke: each movement was observed, refined, and repeated until it became instinctive.

“The more you repeat something, the more precise you become. People talk about 10,000 hours, but I think it takes much more to get really, really good at something. You stay serious, stay focused, and keep putting in the work. That’s how consistency becomes instinct.”

Björn arrived later that morning, stepping into a process already being led by the chefs developing the day’s ideas. He overlooked the team’s developments and those directing the tests. It was less a performance than a glimpse into a working method: an idea considered, drawn out, tested by hand, and sharpened through repetition.

That working method, considered, tested, and sharpened through repetition, has carried Frantzén from this Stockholm kitchen to a singular position in the culinary world. Today, he is the only chef operating three Michelin three-star restaurants simultaneously: Frantzén in Stockholm, Zén in Singapore, and FZN in Dubai. The scale may be global, but the principles remain exacting and personal. As one of Eton’s brand ambassadors, he represents a conviction we share: mastery is built detail by detail, through the quality of the material, the discipline of the process, and the determination to keep refining.