L’Ami Louis: From Bistro to Concept Restaurant
By trying so hard to replicate these institutions, aren’t we in danger of stripping them of their soul? It’s a question worth asking following the announcement that Chez L’Ami Louis is coming to Courchevel. The famous Parisian bistro, founded in 1924 and acquired by LVMH in 2024, will open a pop-up location this winter at Cheval Blanc Courchevel.
Eight tables
Eight tables, thirty place settings, and a menu faithful to the restaurant’s time-honored classics. On paper, the promise is enticing. But do we really need to find the same restaurants in Paris, in the mountains, or—in the future—by the sea? I understand the business logic behind expanding a well-known brand, even if I personally have a hard time getting behind it. By standardizing experiences, doesn’t luxury risk losing precisely what defines it: rarity and uniqueness?
During my last dinner at L’Ami Louis in Paris, I was struck by the large number of American diners. Perhaps these international visitors will be happy to find their familiar surroundings even in the Alps. Why not? I still believe, however, that an institution is first and foremost a home, with its own history and that special atmosphere that can’t be transported as easily as a restaurant menu.
It remains to be seen how this concept will take shape at Cheval Blanc, which is already home to Yannick Alléno’s three-Michelin-starred restaurant, Le 1947. One thing is certain: by trying to be everywhere, the luxury industry sometimes runs the risk of no longer being quite anywhere.
