Michelin Notices Dublin's French Kitchen

The first years in Dublin were a struggle. Guests had to get used to a new kind of cooking, and the kitchen had to fight for the right ingredients^[2]. But the team kept going.

A Kitchen With A Leader

In 1987 Guillaume Lebrun took charge of the kitchen, according to the Michelin Guide^[1]. He would stay at the stoves for decades. Patrick Guilbaud could now focus more on the dining room and the business.

The Star Arrives

In 1988 the Michelin Guide gave Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud its first star^[1][2][3]. Seven years after it opened in a recession, the French restaurant off Baggot Street had made it.

A Michelin star changes a restaurant. It brings visitors from abroad. It brings young cooks who want to learn. It also brings pressure, because every inspection after that can take the star away.

The star sent a clear message: a restaurant in Dublin could be judged by the same standard as the best of Europe.

From Cook To Restaurateur

In these years Guilbaud's own role changed. He told The Caterer in 2014 that he had stopped cooking roughly twenty years earlier^[3]. From then on, he was the host and the owner, and Lebrun was the cook.

It is a partnership that has lasted. The Michelin Guide still named Lebrun as executive chef in 2021, with Stéphane Robin as manager and Kieran Glennon as head chef^[1].

A First Step

The first star was a beginning, not an end. The team wanted more. Eight years later, the inspectors would return with even better news^[1][2].

For a restaurant that had once been mocked for not serving potatoes with every meal, it was a sweet moment. The city had learned to love what Guilbaud was offering^[2].