Raymond Blanc facts for kids
Blanc at the 2019 Chelsea Flower Show
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| Born | 19 November 1949 Near Besançon |
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| Cooking style | French |
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Rating(s)
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Current restaurant(s)
Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons
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Award(s) won
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Raymond Blanc OBE (born 19 November 1949) is a famous French chef. He is known for his amazing cooking and for running a special hotel-restaurant called Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons. This place is in Great Milton, Oxfordshire, England. His restaurant has earned two Michelin stars, which are like top awards for restaurants. It also scored very high in the Good Food Guide. Raymond Blanc taught himself how to cook. He has also trained or worked with many other famous chefs, like Heston Blumenthal and Marco Pierre White.
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Early Life and Learning to Cook
Raymond Blanc was born near Besançon, a city in eastern France. He grew up in a small village called Saône.
While his sisters learned to cook from their mother, Raymond and his brothers learned about gardening from their father. For his 10th birthday, his father gave him a special map to find wild foods. His mother then taught him how to cook what he found. This helped him learn a lot about fresh ingredients.
Starting His Cooking Journey
Raymond Blanc first trained to be a waiter. He worked at a restaurant in France that had a Michelin star. In 1972, he lost his job because he gave the head chef advice on cooking. However, the manager helped him find a job in England.
He moved to England in 1972, even though he didn't speak much English. He started working at a place called The Rose Revived in Newbridge, Oxfordshire. Later, he married Jenny, and they had two sons.
Before opening his own place, Blanc worked for a chef named André Chavagnon. In 1977, Raymond and Jenny opened their first restaurant, Les Quat' Saisons, in Summertown, Oxford. It was a big success right away! It won important awards, including two Michelin stars.
Expanding His Food Businesses
In 1981, Blanc started a chain of bakeries and cafes called La Maison Blanc. These places sold delicious cakes and pastries. There were 14 Maison Blanc shops across the country. The chain was closed in 2017.
In 1983, Raymond Blanc bought a beautiful old house in Great Milton, Oxfordshire. He turned it into Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons. This is a fancy country hotel and restaurant with two Michelin stars. It is known as one of the best places to eat in the country.
Blanc also opened a chain of smaller restaurants called Le Petit Blanc in 1996. His goal was to share the French idea that "good food is important for good living" with people in the United Kingdom. He wanted to create tasty food that everyone could enjoy. These restaurants are now known as Brasserie Blanc.
Since 1996, Raymond has opened many Brasserie Blanc locations, including:
- 1996 - Oxford (re-launched as Brasserie Blanc in 2006)
- 1998 - Cheltenham
- 2000 - Manchester
- 2007 - Leeds and Milton Keynes
- 2009 - Portsmouth
- 2010 - Chichester and Threadneedle Street, London
- 2012 - Bath, Berkhamsted, St Albans, and several in London
In 2012, Blanc became the president of the Sustainable Restaurant Association. This group helps restaurants be more eco-friendly. He also became the Culinary Director for Eurostar, the train service. In 2013, he worked with the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, to help young people get jobs in the food industry. Blanc took on 21 apprentices in his Brasserie Blanc restaurants.
Raymond Blanc also supports the Children's Food Festival. In 2014, he and Kate Humble hosted a TV show called Kew on a Plate. It showed how to grow and cook different vegetable dishes.
During a season of The Great British Bake Off, Raymond Blanc made some comments about a contestant. He later apologized for these comments, saying he was a "grumpy Frenchman."
Chefs Trained by Raymond Blanc
Many talented chefs have learned from or worked with Raymond Blanc. Some of them include:
- Sat Bains
- John Burton-Race
- Heston Blumenthal
- Michael Caines
- Marco Pierre White
Raymond Blanc on TV
Raymond Blanc has been on many TV shows in the UK. He has had his own series and appeared on popular cooking shows.
- 1985 - Take Six Cooks
- 1987 - Food and Drink - A six-part series on BBC2.
- 1994 - Blanc Mange - A BBC2 series about food and chemistry.
- 2000 - Friends for Dinner - A BBC2 series with other famous chefs.
- 2007 - The Restaurant series 1 - An eight-part BBC Two series where couples competed to win their own restaurant.
- 2008 - The Restaurant series 2
- 2009 - The Restaurant series 3
- 2010 - Kitchen Secrets - A BBC cooking show with easy and inspiring recipes.
- 2011 - Kitchen Secrets 2 - The second series of his cooking show.
- 2011 - Raymond Blanc's Christmas Feast - A BBC Christmas special.
- 2012 - The Very Hungry Frenchman - A BBC 2 show.
- 2013 - Raymond Blanc: How to Cook Well - A series of six shows on BBC 2.
- 2015 - Kew on a Plate
- 2021 - Simply Raymond - Series 1.
- 2022 - Simply Raymond - Series 2.
- 2024 - Raymond Blanc's Royal Kitchen Gardens - A series that aired from February to May 2024.
He also made a guest appearance on the BBC comedy show Miranda.
Personal Life
Raymond Blanc has two sons, Olivier and Sebastien. He lives in Oxford with his long-term partner, Natalia Traxel. In 2008, he received an honorary OBE award, which is a special honor from the British Queen.
