Glitterati treasures from Roux brothers’ restaurant fetch mouth-watering £2.3m
THE restaurant favoured by Hollywood stars, musicians and royalty will live on in the homes of its wealthy patrons following an auction of its treasures.
Memorabilia, artwork, tableware, cookbooks and even the contents of the wine cellar from Le Gavroche, which closed in January after 57 years, fetched almost £2.3 million at Christie’s.
The London auction house refused to divulge buyers’ names but the guestbook – which sold for £37,800 – may well contain the identities of some. Containing more than 500 signatures, the book reads like an A to Z of the rich and famous – many of whom regularly dined at the Roux brothers’ Mayfair eatery, later taken on by Michel Roux Jr, Albert’s son.
The autographs, musings and doodles of acting greats such as Sir Michael Caine, Charlton Heston, Barbra Streisand, David Niven, Julie Christie, Alec Guinness and Charlotte Rampling feature among its pages, with the caricature self-portraits of Charlie Chaplin and Harry Secombe giving a glimpse into the actors’ comic minds. Christie’s divided the auction into two sales, with the first comprising of the guestbook and a range of art and objects, including Le Gavroche boy painting, which had hung prominently in the restaurant since its opening in 1967, and from which the establishment took its name, selling for £21,420, against an estimate of £10,000 to £15,000. This sale also included Albert’s library of cookery books, crockery, cutlery, and the illuminated Le Gavroche sign, which sold for £30,240. The second sale featured 670 lots from the wine cellar.
After the auction, an emotional Roux Jr said: “These items hold immense significance for the Roux family and I am pleased to see these iconic pieces find new homes.”