The French Laundry facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The French Laundry |
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Exterior of The French Laundry
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| Restaurant information | |
| Established | 1978 |
| Current owner(s) | Thomas Keller |
| Head chef | Thomas Keller |
| Chef | Ara Jo |
| Pastry Chef | Jamie Houghton |
| Food type | French with Californian cuisine influences |
| Dress code | None |
| Rating |  (Michelin Guide)*AAA Five Diamond Award (2005— ) *Forbes Five Star Award (1999— ) |
| Street address | 6640 Washington St |
| City | Yountville |
| State | California |
| Postal/ZIP code | 94599 |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 38°24′16″N 122°21′54″W / 38.40444030°N 122.36497120°W |
| Seating capacity | 60 |
| Website | |
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French Laundry
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 Location in California
Location in the United States
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| Location | 6640 Washington St., Yountville, California |
| Area | 0.4 acres (0.16 ha; 17,000 sq ft; 1,600 m2) |
| Built | 1900 |
| Architect | Clark, Alexander (Gus) |
| NRHP reference No. | 78000728 |
| Added to NRHP | April 19, 1978 |
The French Laundry is a super famous restaurant in Yountville, California. It's known for its amazing French and Californian food. It has earned three Michelin stars, which is a very high award for restaurants!
Sally Schmitt first opened this special place in 1978. She was great at using fresh, local ingredients. Since 1994, the restaurant has been owned and run by the famous chef Thomas Keller. The building itself is quite old, built in 1900, and it's even listed as a historic place.
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Restaurant History
The building where The French Laundry is located has a cool history! It was first built in 1896 as a saloon, which is like an old-fashioned bar.
Later, in 1920, a man named John Lande bought the building. He turned it into a French steam laundry. This is how the restaurant got its unique name, "The French Laundry"!
In 1978, Sally Schmitt and her husband Don bought the building. They fixed it up and opened a restaurant. They kept the name because everyone in town still called it "The French Laundry." Their restaurant was one of the first to serve what we now call California cuisine. This style of cooking uses fresh, local ingredients. The Schmitts ran the restaurant for 17 years.
In 1994, they sold it to Thomas Keller, who is a very well-known chef. In 1999, Chef Keller released The French Laundry Cookbook. This book won several awards for being a great cookbook.
In July 2014, the restaurant celebrated its 20th birthday with a big party. After that, it closed for a while to get some major updates and renovations.
While it was closed in December 2014, some valuable wine was stolen from its cellar. Luckily, most of the wine was found later! The restaurant reopened on April 7, 2015, after some parts of the building were rebuilt. The staff worked in a temporary kitchen during the rest of the renovation.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, The French Laundry had to close and reopen a few times. It also had to follow rules like having fewer people inside.
Delicious Food and Menus
Every day, The French Laundry offers two different nine-course tasting menus. A tasting menu means you get many small dishes to try. One menu is the Chef's Tasting Menu, and the other is a special vegetarian menu called the Tasting of Vegetables.
Each meal costs US$425 per person. This price includes the tip. However, it doesn't include extra fancy items like caviar or truffles. During holidays like Thanksgiving or Christmas, the restaurant might offer special dishes.
The food is mostly French style. It also has modern American influences. For example, they have a famous dish called smoked salmon cornets. Chef Keller got the idea for this dish from a trip to Baskin-Robbins!
Talented Staff and Chefs
Many amazing chefs have worked at The French Laundry. Some of them later opened their own famous restaurants. These include Grant Achatz from Alinea and Corey Lee from Benu.
Another chef, Timothy Hollingsworth, used to be the Chef de Cuisine here. He won a big cooking competition called the Bocuse d'Or USA in 2008. He then represented the U.S. in the world finals in 2009.
Other Restaurant Locations
In February 2004, Chef Thomas Keller opened another restaurant called Per Se. It is in Manhattan, New York City. Per Se is like an East Coast version of The French Laundry. It has also earned three Michelin stars.
The kitchens of both restaurants are connected! They have a video screen that shows what's happening in the other kitchen in real-time.
Chef Keller also opened a temporary restaurant called Ad Lib. This happened at the Silverado Resort & Spa while The French Laundry was being renovated. Ad Lib served classic American dishes. Chef Keller has opened other temporary restaurants before, in places like Hong Kong and London.
See also
- List of Michelin 3-star restaurants
- List of Michelin 3-star restaurants in the United States
