Joy of life. The phrase used to describe restaurateur Max Mercier by his son Fabrice.

With a dashing smile, an indefatigable zest for life, a healthy dose of charm and an insatiable drive for success, Max Mercier was both unique and great, friends and family said.

Diagnosed in October with multiple myeloma, a type of bone cancer, Mercier returned home to Meschers, France, where he died early Saturday morning surrounded by friends and family. He was 70 years old.

The iconic French chef became known to thousands who ate French and Italian food at his Salt Lake City restaurant, Le Parisien, which sat on the corner of 300 E. 400 South. Max gave Utahns their first taste of chateaubriand, quiche Lorraine and escargot. For almost three decades, Le Parisien was a favorite dining spot for birthdays, anniversaries, holidays and romantic dates.

Mercier is often credited with bringing French cuisine to Utah's capital city.

"Salt Lake City was in its infancy when he came," his son Fabrice Mercier said. "He was totally proud of that."

With a goal to own a restaurant by the time he was 30, Max Mercier left home at age 13 and entered an apprenticeship program to study classic French cuisine, said Katie Mercier, Max's former wife and mother to his sons, Fabrice, 24 and Sacha, 22. He had the equivalent of a seventh-grade education and hardly a penny to his name.

By age 20, he was working as a chef at a restaurant in a small town on the west coast of France.

"That was an important thing for him," Katie Mercier said. "He got a sense of what it was like to be in charge of the kitchen and how good that felt."

Eager to be his own boss, Max Mercier moved to the states at age 23 and worked in Washington, D.C., and St. Louis. His love of travel led him to the red rock country of southern Utah. By 1965, he had moved to Salt Lake City and was working a multitude of menial jobs, Katie Mercier said.

In 1966, he opened his first restaurant, The Bistro, on State Street between 300 and 400 South. The restaurant closed less than two years later - the apparent failure of a bad business partnership and Utahns' perception that French food is expensive.

Renewed with the concept of mixing Italian and French cuisine - Italian is perceived by most as affordable - Max set out to open Le Parisien, albeit with no money.

"He called several people with a little story," Katie Mercier said. "He told them, 'Guess what? I'm so excited! I'm opening a new restaurant, and all I need is $1,000 to finish getting me on my feet and up and running.' '' The story worked, and the checks flowed in.

On the opening night in June 1972, Max Mercier worked as the chef, the server and the cashier to the 23 customers of Le Parisien, Katie Mercier said. While the cooking was classic Italian and French, the special ingredient was Max's presence.

Former Utah first lady Norma Matheson said she and her husband, the late Gov. Scott Matheson, often looked forward to "a dinner at Max's."

"That was the place we always knew we'd get really great food and, of course, visiting with Max was a bonus," she said.

"There was just something incredibly outgoing, friendly, enthusiastic about him - all those things rolled into one," Matheson said.

Katie Mercier said it was Max's charisma that drew her to him. She took her first job at age 15 in the restaurant and by 22, after spending several years digesting all things having to do with France and French culture, she married Max.

Their first son, Fabrice, was born in June 1982. Sacha was born 14 months later.

"It totally shifted his purpose for being. He had an expanded sense of the meaning of life. He was a natural father," Katie Mercier said.

The joy of his young family was offset by scandal in the mid-1980s, when Max Mercier weathered allegations of sexual abuse.

The charges were later dropped and the case dismissed, but not before the scandal nearly ruined his business.

Max Mercier juggled his daily responsibilities of the restaurant with his sons and other interests.

The young family traveled often and spent many Sundays on Utah's lakes.

Max was a member of several organizations, including the Beehive Chef Association - which he founded and where he twice served as president - and the annual Chef and the Child fundraiser, which benefits the Guadalupe Schools.

He sold Le Parisien to his longtime business partner, Shona Cunningham, in the late 1990s. His freedom from the business allowed him to travel, including recent trips to Thailand, China, Vietnam and Portugal, Sacha Mercier said.

While many are shocked at the news of his death, few are surprised that Max Mercier chose to keep his illness a secret to all but a handful of friends and family.

"He was a very generous person," Sacha Mercier said. "He had a whole lot of influence on everyone. He changed a lot of lives."

A service is planned for 10 a.m. June 22 at St. Mark's Cathedral, 231 E. 100 South.

1936-2006

Max Mercier