Silvano Giraldin, general manager of the two-Michelin-starred Le Gavroche and one of the hospitality industry’s best loved luminaries, is to retire after 37 years at the London restaurant.
Giraldin, who joined the iconic Mayfair restaurant at the age of 23 in 1971, will retire at the end of this month.
He will hand over the reins to assistant manager Emmanuel Landre, who has been working at Le Gavroche for 10 years, on 30 August.
However, Giraldin will continue to play a role at Le Gavroche as restaurant director alongside Michel and Albert Roux and will continue to be involved in the staff training.
He will also be working as a consultant with Albert Roux as well as the Academy of Food and Wine and the Academy of Culinary Arts.
Giraldin joined Le Gavroche as a commis waiter in 1971, quickly working his way up to maitre d’ before becoming general manager in 1975.
He told Caterersearch that the time at Le Gavroche had been “fantastic” and that he could not have managed a better restaurant.
“Many things have changed at Le Gavroche over the years but to me the biggest change has been the food culture in Britain,” he said. “Back in the day you could count the number of great restaurants on one hand and the British public wasn’t as sophisticated as it is today.
“But things really have moved on and today Britain has a fantastic culinary offering that is appreciated by the public.”
For an extended profile on Giraldin, see next week’s issue of Caterer (21 August).
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By Kerstin Kühn
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