Hélène Darroze

Hélène Darroze (born 23 February 1967) is a French chef. She has 6 Michelin stars and three restaurants, Hélène Darroze at The Connaught in London with 3 stars, Marsan par Hélène Darroze in Paris with 2 stars and Hélène Darroze à Villa La Coste in Provence with 1 star. In 1990, after graduating from university, Darroze began working for Alain Ducasse in the office of the Le Louis XV restaurant in Monaco, where she was convinced to enter the kitchen by Ducasse. It was her first time working anywhere other than her family restaurant and she later said that she was working in the office about half the time. After working for Ducasse for three years, she returned to her family's restaurant and kept its existing Michelin star. After the restaurant suffered financial difficulties and closed in 1999, she opened Restaurant Hélène Darroze in Rue d'Assas, Paris and won her first Michelin star in 2001, picking up a second in 2003. The second star was lost in the 2010 version of the guide. In 2008, Darroze was named as the new chef at the Connaught in London, replacing Angela Hartnett, who had operated Angela Hartnett at The Connaught there on behalf of Gordon Ramsay Holdings. Darroze took o...