Drouant, restaurant on Place Gaillon since 1880

Drouant, the restaurant on Place Gaillon near the Opéra, began in 1880, when the Alsatian Charles Drouant opened a bar and tobacconist’s here. At the turn of the century it drew Parisian society with the oysters sent each week by his brother-in-law, a Breton oyster farmer.

On 31 October 1914 the ten members of the Académie Goncourt met here for the first time, in the first-floor salon. Since then they have lunched here on the first Tuesday of each month and chosen the winner of the Prix Goncourt each autumn. In 1926 writers waiting for the result founded the Prix Renaudot in the house.

Jean Drouant succeeded his father in 1914, then his nephew, also Jean, from 1946 to 1976, who sold the house to Robert Pascal, who had started at Drouant as a kitchen hand. Chef Louis Grondard won one, then two Michelin stars. Antoine Westermann, a relative of the family, took over in 2006, then the Gardinier brothers in 2018.

Chef Romain Van Thienen cooks seasonal French food in a hushed décor by Fabrizio Casiraghi. The house serves from breakfast to dinner, with brunch on Sundays, and extends its history through wine dinners and literary evenings.