How Eric Ripert Gifts
“Everybody likes to be pampered and spoiled and loved and feel that they are special.”
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We asked 20 notable people about their gifting philosophies, gifting nightmares, the best gifts under $25, and much more. We’ll be publishing each of their questionnaires now through December 23 in this new series, “How I Gift.” Today, chef Eric Ripert on watches, Ferrero Rocher chocolates, and his dream White Elephant lineup.
What is your gift-giving philosophy?
When someone says to me, “I don’t want anything,” I don’t listen. I never believe it because everybody likes to be pampered and spoiled and loved and feel that they are special. So if someone says they don’t need anything, I’m going out of my way to find something that is meaningful to that person that’s going to surprise that person and make them happy.
What gift have you received that you’re most surprised about still using regularly?
When I was 17 and graduating from culinary school, my mother gave me a Cartier watch, a Santos, that I still wear on occasion to this day. It was my first beautiful watch, and I was so surprised and so happy. It was very special to me. It meant something because the watch was a symbol of me becoming a man and me going in my life and graduating.
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Santos de Cartier watch
You have to give the same present to everyone for the rest of your life. What is it?
High-quality chocolate — often dark chocolate because it’s very pure. I’m a chocolate addict, and I believe that it’s very few people who do not like great chocolates.
What was the most heartfelt, smart, so-you present you’ve ever received? Tell us the story.
I was in India visiting the Dalai Lama last year. It’s obvious that receiving teachings from him is gift enough. However at the end of our time together, he surprised me with a Buddha that I keep in my meditation room.
Would you ever just give cash? When? How much?
I give cash for birthdays and holidays to young people. Like my son for instance, he’s happy to receive cash and then he goes and buys sneakers that he likes.
Here’s $10 to get a gift for someone at Walgreens. What are you buying?
With $10, I’d buy Ferrero Rocher candies. They’re inexpensive, and I like them a lot. They make people happy.
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What’s the best gift under $25?
A great book.
What’s the last thing you impulse bought for someone else?
The last gift that I gave that was very impulsive was a watch for my wife, Sandra, from Vacheron Constantin. I have this watch, which is called the Overseas watch, that is made for men and I have had it for 25 or 30 years. I was passing by the store and saw they have a version for women with diamonds. I thought it was a great idea for her and I to have a similar watch. Obviously one more feminine than the other. I was afraid that that watch would not be available for long because very often those watchmakers make limited series, so you see the watch and then by the time you think of getting it, the watch is gone. I got it immediately. It was actually the last one. It’s stainless steel and encrusted with diamonds on the outside and is smaller and much lighter than mine.
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What was your absolute worst gifting experience (giving or getting)?
So every year, for the holidays, I receive a basket with fake cheese, cheap crackers, very bad dips, and a couple of other things that are barely edible. It’s meant to be edible. It’s not meant to be plastic. It’s coming every year. I do not say “thank you.” I just receive it, and there it is.
How can all bad gift givers get better? In five words or less.
Be thoughtful, surprising, and generous.
You can pick any five people (dead or alive) to join your game of White Elephant. Who are you choosing?
Anthony Bourdain, José Andrés, Maguy Le Coze, Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi.
You just got someone you have truly never met for Secret Santa. What are you buying them?
AirTags.
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What’s the (physically) largest gift you’ve ever given?
The biggest gift I gave was a BMW i7 to my wife — electric. I wanted to have it on the front of the house, like in the movies with the bow and everything. It didn’t really work like that. Um, because we had to install a plug for the car first in the garage. It was during the summer she was at the house. And when she saw the charger, she asked me what it was and suddenly the car appeared with no bow tie, no nothing. But when she saw the car, she thought it was a pretty good car. It’s like driving a computer basically.
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BMW i7
And the smallest?
It was an engagement diamond. I got engaged at the St. Regis Hotel at the restaurant Lespinasse. Gray Kunz at the time was the chef. It was in the box and I put it under the napkin before we started our dinner. It took some time for my wife to discover what was going on under the napkin and why I was so nervous. And then I made the proposal. But people at tables next to us were waving and pointing at the napkin. And she was looking at them like, “What’s happening?”
What is your dream gift? Is there any chance you actually get it?
A three-week retreat in the Himalayas, no cell phone, no communication until I get back.
Is it ever okay to regift?
It’s totally okay to regift, if it’s something that maybe you have already at home or something that it’s not necessarily for you, your taste, or even your size. If it’s clothing or something like that, why not regift it to someone that will enjoy it?
What’s the best gift wrap?
I love the way the Japanese approach gift wrap. The craftsmanship is always beautiful. They pay attention to every little detail. I collect papers from Japan, lots of different ones and different patterns, and they are always very beautiful. I’m not very good at doing the wrapping, but I manage.
More Gift Ideas
- The Best Gifts for 2-Year-Olds
- The Best Gifts for 1-Year-Olds
- The Best Father’s Day Gifts for Outdoorsy Dads, According to Outdoorsy Dads
- The Best Gifts for Outdoorsy Dads, According to Outdoorsy Dads
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