The building was constructed as a saloon in 1896 by a Scottishstonesman for Pierre Guillaume.[4] A 1906 law outlawed the sale and consumption of alcohol in the area around the Veterans Home of California Yountville,[5] and the building was bought in 1920 by John Lande who used it as a French steam laundry,[6] which is the origin of the restaurant's name.[4]
In 1978, Sally Schmitt and her husband Don, a former bank appraiser,[7] the then-mayor of Yountville,[8] purchased the building and renovated it into a restaurant. They kept the name, the French Laundry, because locals still referred to the building as such. The French Laundry was one of the first restaurants to offer what would become known as California cuisine.[9][10] The Schmitts ran the restaurant for 17 years before selling it to Thomas Keller in 1994.[11][12]
In July 2014, the Napa Valley restaurant celebrated its 20th anniversary with a six-hour feast for friends, locals, and luminaries[14] and temporarily closed for renovations before the end of the year.[15]
In December 2014, while being temporarily closed for renovations, The French Laundry wine cellar was robbed of an estimated $500,000 of wine. Most of the wine was subsequently recovered.[16][17]
On April 7, 2015, the restaurant reopened following demolition of a number of buildings on the site. During the remainder of the renovation project, the staff worked out of a temporary kitchen.[18]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, The French Laundry closed and re-opened several times, and faced restrictions such as limited seating.[19]
Cuisine
This vegetable tasting menu was one of three menus available for Sunday December 4, 2005
Every day, The French Laundry serves two different nine-course tasting menus: the Chef's Tasting Menu and the vegetarian Tasting of Vegetables.[20] Each menu is US$390 per person (including gratuity) for the base meal, although not including additional supplements such as caviar and truffles.[21][22] During the winter holiday season, Thanksgiving, Halloween, and other holidays, the restaurant may offer special dishes.
In February 2004 in Manhattan, New York City, Thomas Keller opened Per Se, an East Coast version of his Yountville restaurant. It has also received three Michelin stars. The kitchens of both restaurants are connected via a real-time video feed on a television screen.[29]
Thomas Keller opened Ad Lib, a pop-up restaurant in the Silverado Resort & Spa during the renovation of The French Laundry. The restaurant serves American classics.[30] This is not the first pop-up restaurant that Keller has helmed. Previous iterations occurred at the Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong[31] and at Harrod's in London.[32]
^Goldstein, Joyce; Brown, Dore (September 6, 2013). Inside the California Food Revolution: Thirty Years That Changed Our Culinary Consciousness. University of California Press. pp. 4–6. ISBN9780520956704.
^"Las Vegas". Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations. Season 1. Episode 7. October 17, 2005. 7 minutes in. His Napa Valley restaurant, The French Laundry, is in my opinion, the best restaurant in the world. Period.
