L'Escargot (restaurant)

Last updated

L'Escargot
Frontage of L'Escargot Restaurant Soho London - 2024.jpg
Façade of the restaurant in 2024
L'Escargot (restaurant)
Restaurant information
Established1896;128 years ago (1896)
Street address48 Greek Street, Soho
City London, W1
CountryUnited Kingdom
Other informationNearest station:
Underground no-text.svg Tottenham Court Road

L'Escargot is London's oldest French restaurant, [1] and is also one of the city's oldest restaurants. [2] [3] It is housed in a Georgian townhouse on Greek Street, in the heart of the Soho district. The building, which dates from 1741, was previously the private residence of the Duke of Portland.

Contents

History

Soho began to be developed after the Great Fire of London in 1666, when over 13,000 houses were destroyed and 100,000 citizens left homeless. The area, then called Soho Fields, was an obvious location for the wealthy to build their property, being within easy reach of the royal palaces of Westminster, Whitehall and St James's. The name Soho is said to derive from "so-ho", a popular hunting cry of the time.

Georges Gaudin established a restaurant in 1896 at the bottom end of Greek Street, called Le Bienvenue. He became famous for his snails, his being the first restaurant in England to serve the delicacy. When in 1927 he moved to larger premises at 48 Greek Street, [2] his customers implored him to rename his restaurant L'Escargot after his most popular dish. He acquiesced, and called the new restaurant L'Escargot Bienvenue. His snail farm in the basement of the new restaurant became quite a talking point. A plaster bust of Gaudin riding a snail, with the motto "slow but sure", remains to this day on display outside the restaurant.

1980s–1990s

After his retirement his son Alex ran the restaurant, and it established itself as the best French restaurant in London. Nick Lander and his wife Jancis Robinson, Master of Wine, took over the restaurant in 1981 and maintained its reputation as one of the best restaurants in London. They employed Elena Salvoni, widely recognized as one of the greatest restaurant managers of the 1980s, hence regulars often nicknamed the restaurant 'Elena's Place'.

L'Escargot was refurbished in 1992, when Jimmy Lahoud and chefs David Cavalier and Garry Hollihead took over the reins. Marco Pierre White took over as Head Chef when he went into partnership with Jimmy Lahoud at Quo Vadis restaurant on Dean Street and the restaurant was voted Best French Restaurant in London and Best Restaurant in Soho.

Recent Developments (2014–Today)

In February 2014, L'Escargot was acquired by Brian Clivaz [3] [4] (of The Arts Club, Home House and Langan's Brasserie), Laurence Isaacson and a group of their friends. [5] In 2023 Thomas Hitzlsperger, [6] a former Premier League footballer and entrepreneur, acquired L'Escargot.

The Snail Club

In February 2024, The Snail Club, a private members’ club, opened on the top floor of the restaurant. [7] [8]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soho</span> District in London, England

Soho is an area of the City of Westminster in the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heston Blumenthal</span> English chef

Heston Marc Blumenthal is an English celebrity chef, TV personality and food writer. His restaurants include the Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire, a three-Michelin-star restaurant that was named the world's best by the World's 50 Best Restaurants in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Fat Duck</span> Restaurant in Bray, Berkshire, England

The Fat Duck is a fine dining restaurant in Bray, Berkshire, England, owned by the chef Heston Blumenthal. Housed in a 16th-century building, the Fat Duck opened on 16 August 1995. Although it originally served food similar to a French bistro, it soon acquired a reputation for precision and innovation, and has been at the forefront of many modern culinary developments, such as food pairing, flavour encapsulation and multi-sensory cooking.

Greek Street is a street in Soho, London, leading south from Soho Square to Shaftesbury Avenue. The street is famous for its restaurants and cosmopolitan nature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Aikens (restaurant)</span> Restaurant in London, England

Tom Aikens was a London Michelin-starred fine dining restaurant operated by the eponymous chef from April 2003 opening to January 2014 closure. The restaurant received mostly positive critical reception.

Les Cousins was a folk and blues club in the basement of a restaurant in Greek Street, in the Soho district of London, England. It was most prominent during the British folk music revival of the mid-1960s and was known as a venue where musicians of the era met and learnt from each other. As such, it was influential in the careers of, for example, Jackson C. Frank, Al Stewart, Marc Brierley, Davey Graham, Bert Jansch, John Renbourn, Sandy Denny, John Martyn, Alexis Korner, The Strawbs, Roy Harper, The Young Tradition and Paul Simon. Several albums were recorded there.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Gay Hussar</span> Restaurant In London, England

The Gay Hussar was a celebrated Hungarian restaurant located at 2 Greek Street, Soho, central London, England. It was established in 1953 and closed in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicholas Lander</span> British restaurateur and writer on the restaurant industry

Nicholas Laurence Lander is a British consultant to and writer on the restaurant industry.

Jason Atherton is an English chef and restaurateur. His flagship restaurant Pollen Street Social gained a Michelin Star in 2011, its opening year. He was the Executive Chef at Gordon Ramsay's Michelin starred Maze in London until 30 April 2010. In 2014 he co-hosted the Sky Living TV series My Kitchen Rules.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The French House, Soho</span> Pub and dining room at 49 Dean Street, Soho, London

The French House is a pub and dining room at 49 Dean Street, Soho, London. It was previously known as the York Minster, but was informally called "the French pub" or "the French house" by its regulars. It sells more Ricard than anywhere else in Britain, and only serves beer in half-pints except on 1 April, when a recent custom has been that Suggs serves the first pint of the day.

Alexis Pascal Gauthier is a French chef. He is the chef patron of the Gauthier Soho restaurant in Soho, London and was awarded a Michelin star in 2011. He previously held a Michelin star as head chef of the restaurant Roussillon in Pimlico, London, until 2010. He trained under Alain Ducasse at Le Louis XV in Monaco, and has appeared as a judge on two versions of the BBC One television show MasterChef. He became a vegan in 2016 and changed Gauthier Soho to a vegan menu in 2021 and opened 123 Vegan, a vegan cafeteria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quo Vadis (restaurant)</span> Restaurant in Dean Street, Soho, London

Quo Vadis is a restaurant and private club in Soho, London. It primarily serves modern British food. It was founded in 1926 by Peppino Leoni, an Italian, and has passed through numerous owners since then, including the chef Marco Pierre White, and is currently owned by Sam and Eddie Hart, also the owners of Barrafina. The restaurant is named after the Latin phrase Quo vadis?, meaning "Where are you going?"

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maison Novelli</span> Restaurant in central London

Maison Novelli was a restaurant in Clerkenwell, Central London, located opposite the Old Session House. It was opened by chef proprietor Jean-Christophe Novelli, and held a single Michelin star in the 1997 Michelin Guide. The restaurant's holding company went into liquidation in 2000, and the restaurant was sold to JJ Restaurants with Novelli remaining on the staff as a consultant and advisor. Maison Novelli was closed in 2003.

Jimmy Lahoud is a Lebanese businessman and restaurateur in London, England. He has owned restaurants such as Quo Vadis, L'Escargot, and Café St. Pierre. Lahoud is an art collector, displaying his Picasso, Miró, Chagall, Warhol and Matisse pieces in at least one of his restaurants. Lahoud is credited for launching the career of celebrity chef Marco Pierre White. With White, Lahoud established White Star Line Ltd, which owned the Belvedere Restaurant.

Luke Thomas,, is a celebrity chef, author and entrepreneur who made headlines when he was just eighteen years old, being named the youngest head chef in the United Kingdom. Thomas is the brand owner of the historic social club known as Blacks, located in a restored 18th-century Georgian townhouse in Soho London, as well as the chef-owner of Luke's Dining Room located at Sanctum on the Green, in Cookham. Thomas has also appeared as himself in a number of television shows produced in the United Kingdom, including Russell Howard's Good News, the Great British Menu and Junior MasterChef, as well as the BBC Three documentary titled Britain's Youngest Chef featuring the trials, tribulations and meteoric rise of a young Chef Luke Thomas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vivek Singh (chef)</span> Indian celebrity chef

Vivek Singh is an Indian celebrity chef, restaurateur, and media personality known for his Indian cuisine. He is the CEO and Executive Chef of four London-based modern restaurants and one Oxford-based modern restaurant. Singh is a regular face on BBC's Saturday Kitchen, and has been featured on television shows including Madhur Jaffrey's Curry Nation, At Home with Rachel Allen, NDTV Good Times – Will Travel for Food and My Kitchen Rules UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Café Monico</span> Restaurant in London, England

Café Monico was a restaurant on London's Shaftesbury Avenue.

Alastair Little was a British chef, cookbook author and restaurateur. He first became known in the 1980s for his eponymous Soho restaurant and frequent appearances on British television. His menus, which changed daily and featured seasonal produce, were influential in modern British restaurants.

A. Wong is a Michelin-starred Chinese restaurant, located in Pimlico, London. It serves modern British retake on traditional Cantonese dishes. It is owned by Andrew Wong, a third-generation London restaurateur who is also the restaurant's chef de cuisine.

References

  1. Royce-Greensill, Sarah (17 October 2014). "Upstairs at L'Escargot: Soho's newest members' club-Telegraph". The Telegraph . Archived from the original on 18 October 2014. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  2. 1 2 Vines, Richard (17 June 2014). "L'Escargot Is Hot -- Even Before Your Snails Catch Fire: Review". Bloomberg Business . Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  3. 1 2 Prynn, Jonathan (6 August 2014). "Members' club that's just 'for nice people' to open at historic Soho venue - London". Evening Standard . Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  4. "L'Escargot in Soho comes out of its shell under new ownership". Time Out London . 20 March 2014. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  5. Gwilliam, Katy (9 March 2011). "Soho's French fancy: L'Escargot reinvents the snail". The Telegraph. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  6. Crawford, Ben (17 February 2024). "Trailblazing Premier League star owns London restaurant where Diana was regular". The Mirror. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
  7. "The Snail Club celebrates 4-months in Soho - UK News Group". 27 June 2024. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
  8. Blair, Natasha (22 January 2024). "L'Escargot Review. Soho's Iconic French Restaurant Remains Excellent". www.tripreporter.co.uk. Retrieved 26 August 2024.

51°30′50.2″N0°7′51.6″W / 51.513944°N 0.131000°W / 51.513944; -0.131000