Le Gavroche is a restaurant

Restaurant

A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...

 on 43 Upper Brook Street in Mayfair

Mayfair

Mayfair is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster.-History:Mayfair is named after the annual fortnight-long May Fair that took place on the site that is Shepherd Market today...

 (London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

). It was opened in 1967 by Michel

Michel Roux

Michel Roux is a French-born chef and restaurateur working in Britain.Born in Charolles, Saône-et-Loire, Roux moved to Paris with his family after the war, where they set up a charcuterie...

 and Albert Roux

Albert Roux

Albert Roux OBE is a French-born restaurateur and chef working in Britain. He and his brother Michel operated Le Gavroche, the first restaurant in the UK to gain three Michelin stars. He helped train a series of chefs that went on to win Michelin stars, and his son, Michel Roux, Jr...

 although the original premises were on 61 Lower Sloane Street until 1981.

The restaurant offers classical French food

Haute cuisine

Haute cuisine or grande cuisine was characterised by French cuisine in elaborate preparations and presentations served in small and numerous courses that were produced by large and hierarchical staffs at the grand restaurants and hotels of Europe.The 17th century chef and writer La Varenne...

, although some dishes come with something of a modern twist. The most famous dishes are Soufflé Suissesse (cheese soufflé baked on double cream); Le Caneton Gavroche (whole poached duck in a light consommé served with three sauces for two); and Omelette Rothschild.

Albert's son Michel Roux Jr is the current chef patron having taken over the kitchen in 1991. Under his stewardship Le Gavroche has been consistently placed in Restaurant's

Restaurant (magazine)

Restaurant is a British magazine aimed at chefs, restaurant proprietors and other catering professionals that concentrates on the fine dining end of the industry. It produces an annual list of what it considers to be the best 50 restaurants, based on the votes of 600 "chefs, restaurateurs, critics...

 Top 50

Restaurant (magazine) Top 50

The S.Pellegrino World's 50 Best Restaurants is produced by British magazine Restaurant based on a poll of international chefs, restaurateurs, gourmands and restaurant critics. In addition to the main ranking, the Chef's Choice list is based on votes from the fifty head chefs from the restaurants...

. The current head chef is Rachel Humphrey.

In 1982 it became the first restaurant in the UK to be awarded three Michelin star

Michelin Guide

The Michelin Guide is a series of annual guide books published by Michelin for over a dozen countries. The term normally refers to the Michelin Red Guide, the oldest and best-known European hotel and restaurant guide, which awards the Michelin stars...

s although it was demoted to two stars in 1993. Regarding the loss of the third star Michel Roux Jr said: "Certainly I would love three stars. I believe in the system and the recognition would be wonderful. But I am not cooking that style of food. There are dishes that are worthy of it but my style really doesn't suit that status."

Chefs who have worked in the kitchen of Le Gavroche include Marco Pierre White

Marco Pierre White

Marco Pierre White is a British celebrity chef, restaurateur and television personality. He is noted for his contributions to contemporary international cuisine, and his exceptional culinary skills....

, Gordon Ramsay

Gordon Ramsay

Gordon James Ramsay, OBE is a Scottish chef, television personality and restaurateur. He has been awarded 13 Michelin stars....

, Marcus Wareing

Marcus Wareing

Marcus Wareing , is an English chef, currently Chef Patron of "Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley" in Knightsbridge, and previously the Grill Room at the Savoy Hotel on the Strand....

, Bryn Williams

Bryn Williams

Bryn Dwyfor Williams is a chef originally from Dinbych , North Wales. He is the head chef and sole proprietor of Odette's Restaurant, Primrose Hill, London...

, and Michael Smith

Michael Smith (chef)

Michael Dixon Smith is a Canadian chef and writer, host of The Inn Chef, Chef at Home, Chef at Large and Chef Abroad .-Life and career:...

.

Le Gavroche is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as having served the most expensive meal per head when three diners spent $20,945 on one meal (including cigars, spirits, and six bottles of wine costing $19,248) in September 1997.

David Coulson, runner-up in the 2010 BBC series Masterchef: The Professionals, accepted an offer of employment from Michel Roux Jnr during the final stages of the show and will commence employment with Le Gavroche as chef de partie in January 2011.

In 2008, Le Gavroche's General Manager, Silvano Giraldin retired after 37 years working there. He remains one of Le Gavroche's directors.

The restaurant's name comes from the character Gavroche

Gavroche

Gavroche is a fictional character from the novel Les Misérables by Victor Hugo.-Gavroche in the novel:Gavroche is the eldest son of M. and Mme Thénardier. He has two sisters, Éponine and Azelma, and two unnamed younger brothers. He is also technically unnamed; the reader is told he chooses the...

 in Victor Hugo

Victor Hugo

Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....

's Les Misérables

Les Misérables

Les Misérables , translated variously from the French as The Miserable Ones, The Wretched, The Poor Ones, The Wretched Poor, or The Victims), is an 1862 French novel by author Victor Hugo and is widely considered one of the greatest novels of the nineteenth century...

.