Although Alain Ducasse might be better known for his uber fine dining spots like Le Meurice or his newly-opened riverboat on the Seine, this bistro has been around since 1932. Once owned by Marthe Allard, and kept in the family for centuries, not much has changed about this charmingly quaint spot in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, since Ducasse’s takeover. You arrive in a corridor opposite a tiny, semi … Continue reading Allard, Paris
A day trip to Paris is far less extravagant than you might think and it’s the perfect way to get your Parisian fix without spending a fortune on a hotel. With a small gang, we booked Alain Ducasses’s michelin starred bistro Benoit on rue Saint Martin. It’s as quintessentially French as you could hope for; brass rails, red velvet banquettes and wood panelled walls. And … Continue reading Benoit, Paris
Alain Ducasse (the legendary French chef who also owns Rivea and The Grill at The Dorchester), has held three Michelin stars at his eponymous restaurant inside Park Lane’s Dorchester hotel for over eight years. Technically I should be boycotting the hotel, seeing as the owner, the Sultan of Brunei, hates us gays, but I really wanted to give it a try. The room is large … Continue reading Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, Park Lane
Located on the permanent building site that is Berwick Street in Soho (will they ever finish digging up that road?) this is Alan Yau’s latest restaurant. You know Alan Yau, the chap who created Wagamama and sold it for millions then did the same with Yauatcha and Hakkasan. There’s a downstairs bar/pub and a restaurant upstairs at the top of a rather tiny spiral staircase. … Continue reading Duck and Rice, Soho
Rivea (pronounced like Nivea FYI), is the second UK restaurant from Alain Ducasse – after his three Michelin starred eponymous restaurant in the Dorchester. This one also has a swanky location, in the Bvlgari Hotel in Knightsbridge down in the basement. A hotel restaurant in the basement is never an easy thing to pull off. We shouldn’t have been so pessimistic however – as we … Continue reading Rivea, Knightsbridge
