The French Laundry
The French Laundry is a three-Michelin-star French and Californian cuisine restaurant located in Yountville, California, in the Napa Valley. Sally Schmitt opened The French Laundry in 1978 and designed her menus around local, seasonal ingredients; she was a visionary chef and pioneer of California cuisine. Since 1994, the chef and owner of The French Laundry is Thomas Keller. The restaurant building dates from 1900 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.[3]
The French Laundry
1978
Thomas Keller
David Breeden
Jamie Houghton
French with Californian cuisine influences
None
(Michelin Guide)
*AAA Five Diamond Award (2005-present)[1]
*Forbes Five Star Award (1999-present)[2]
6640 Washington St
California
94599
United States
60
6640 Washington St., Yountville, California
0.4 acres (0.16 ha; 17,000 sq ft; 1,600 m2)
1900
Clark, Alexander (Gus)
April 19, 1978
Staff[edit]
Notable alumni of The French Laundry's kitchen staff have included Grant Achatz of Alinea, Eric Ziebold of Kinship and Métier, Corey Lee of Benu, Jonathan Benno of Lincoln Ristorante, René Redzepi of Noma in Copenhagen, Ron Siegel of The Dining Room at the Ritz Carlton, and Duff Goldman of Charm City Cakes. Previous Chef de Cuisine Timothy Hollingsworth[21] won the Bocuse d'Or USA semi-finals in 2008,[22][23] and represented the U.S. in the international finals in January 2009, placing sixth.[24]
Other locations[edit]
In February 2004, Thomas Keller opened the East Coast version of his Yountville restaurant, which he named Per Se, and also has received three Michelin stars. The kitchens of both restaurants are connected via a real-time video feed on a television screen.[25]
Thomas Keller opened a pop-up restaurant in the Silverado Resort & Spa during the renovation of The French Laundry. The restaurant, which serves American classics, is called Ad Lib.[26] This is not the first pop-up restaurant that Keller has helmed, previously popping up at the Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong[27] and at Harrod's in London.[28]
Since 2006, it has been awarded three stars in the Michelin Guide to San Francisco. It received a favorable review in The New York Times[29] and was called "the best restaurant in the world, period" in 2005 by Anthony Bourdain.[30]
Since 2007, the restaurant has been the recipient of the Wine Spectator Grand Award.[31]
