Michel Roux Jr. - 15 Secrets of Le Gavroche’s 57 Year Success

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Michel is an ABSOLUTE LEGEND so loved our conversation.
We dive deep into the business side of running one of World’s most successful restaurants, Le Gavroche. You’re going to love this episode!!

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👨🏻‍🍳 ON THE MENU
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🍊 Albert Roux’s Brutal Honesty Rule: “…people are too scared to be brutally honest with their staff”
🏆 How to become World Class at LITERALLY anything… “what you practice in private, you’re praised for in public”
🔥 How to manage Ego geniuses - Gordon Ramsay, Marco Pierre White, Marcus Wareing
🤝 Workhorses + Egos = Effective Team.. “partner egos with introverts to get the best of your team”
🎻 Le Gavroche’s Symphony of Service Rule… “every employee must work in every job to understand the total knowledge of the business”
🧼 Head Chefs Must be Pot washers… “every employee must work in different jobs to understand the knowledge of the whole team”
🍾 Le Gavroche’s famous Champagne Board Meeting Principles: Be all over your numbers + constantly ask how can we make this better?
👵️ Dinner Jacket Rule “Reinvention” Rule: constantly adapt + reinvent as culture changes
🌻 Ernest Sheckleton “By Endurance We Conquer” + How to build resilience
🧠 Guest vs. Customer Rule… “there’s a big difference between a guest and a customer”… different framing + words = different behaviours.


TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Intro & Ozempic’s restaurant impact
04:10 Albert Roux, according to his son
07:05 You're good—but not three Michelin star good
08:00 What three-star standards actually look like
09:15 “How you do one thing is how you do everything.”
10:45 Least naturally talented: Gordon, Marco, or Marcus?
13:04 Quiet chefs who now run 5-star resorts
17:00 Gordon Ramsay stole one of my signature dishes
20:01 Marco Pierre White’s early days & need for control
22:50 Ending the war between front & back of house
25:00 Why kitchen staff trained as waiters (and vice versa)
30:00 Most chefs aren't taught management—here’s why that’s dangerous
32:43 Managing egos: "Some need constant affection."
34:48 Pairing gifted chefs with kitchen “workhorses”
36:45 "I can tell if a restaurant is happy in minutes."
38:39 The secret sauce: human connection
40:31 Lead by example—yes, even on pot-washing duty
43:39 University isn't for everyone—bring back apprenticeships
45:47 “You just never know when they may come back.”
48:05 Silvano’s service genius: memory, posture, presence
52:44 Lessons from Michelle’s first boss in Brittany
54:41 The last thing Michel Roux cooked for his father
57:01 What I miss most since closing Gavroche
1:01:01 Albert Roux's love of women and war-forged appetites
1:07:03 “I’d rather be a happy two than a miserable three.”
1:10:03 Albert Roux vs. uncle: The omelette wars
1:21:01 truffle mousse, and supermarket revolution
1:24:00 Board meetings about dish soap—and why it mattered
1:33:02 Pub culture, human nature & the secular church
1:39:13 How to revive struggling pubs today
1:43:00 Michel Roux's Hidden gem: Ploussard in Clapham
1:47:13 Why Michelin stars must reflect the chef’s soul
1:50:00 Taking over Gavroche and modernizing without alienating loyal guests
1:54:00 Ditching the tie & jacket rule—fighting the old guard
2:00:00 “Fine dining” shouldn’t feel like eating in a morgue
2:03:01 When Gavroche lost a Michelin Star
2:06:01 Hospitality is not a job. It’s a way of life
2:13:00 Military service and cooking for the French president
2:16:00 Guest vs. customer—why the difference matters
2:18:00 Why surprises matter in hospitality

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