Reknowned restaurant Le Gavroche to close doors after 56 years in London

Le Gavroche, the French restaurant credited with being the birthplace of modern British formal dining, is to close after 56 years.

Founded by Michel and Albert Roux in 1967, the institution in Mayfair, central London, was the first UK restaurant to win a coveted Michelin star award, before going on to be the first to add two and three stars for its food.

The Roux brothers have been dubbed the “Godfathers” of modern British restaurant cuisine for their ground-breaking restaurant and championing of talented chefs.

Michel Roux Jnr, son of founder Albert and the current chef and patron of the legendary restaurant, said he was tired and decided to close the restaurant to get a “better work-life balance”.

“This decision has not been made lightly. Le Gavroche means so much, not just to myself and the Roux family, but to the wider Gavroche team and our guests who have become family over so many years.”

Le Gavroche will close its doors in January 2024, when the restaurant’s lease ends. Mr Rour Jnr said this had not been the main factor in the decision, but it had given him the chance to “assess and consider the future”.

“I’d like the restaurant to close on a high. It’s about turning the page and moving forward so I can focus on my family and other business ventures. This is not the end of Le Gavroche – the restaurant may be closing, but the name will live on, as will the Roux dynasty.”

The chef, 63, who also acts a judge in the popular BBC MasterChef: The Professionals series, has run the restaurant since 1991 and closure would make time for a better work/life balance, enabling him to spend more time with his family without the daily demands of a busy Michelin-starred restaurant.

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The Gavroche brand and the company behind it will be retained by the family and will be used for special events and pop-ups, private and public, in different locations, potentially around the world he said.

The restaurant’s 43 staff would be given redundancy, he said.

He said Le Gavroche would be going to sea in a collaboration with Cunard, and he would continue to write cookbooks and create television series.

“I am pleased to have made this decision and excited to take Le Gavroche on the road, to be a master of Le Gavroche rather than it being my master,” he added.

Le Gavroche has had some of the best UK and international chefs training in its kitchen, including the likes of Gordon Ramsay, Marco Pierre White, Marcus Wareing, Pierre Koffman, Monica Galetti, Jun Tanaka, Rowley Leigh and Paul Rankin. The current chef of the two-starred restaurant, Rachel Humphrey, joined as an apprentice in 1996.