Chef Paul Bocuse

Born into a long line of father-son chef teams, Paul Bocuse is arguably one of the most famous French chefs of the 20th century. One of the fathers of nouvelle cuisine, he received a third Michelin star in 1965 for his bistro near Lyon.
The Bocuse franchise consists of at least a dozen spin-off restaurants, scores of cookbooks, an international cooking competition "Bocuse d'Or", as well as a wife and two long-term mistresses.


Contribution to French gastronomy
Bocuse has made many contributions to French gastronomy both directly and indirectly. Because he has had numerous students, many of whom have become famous chefs themselves. One of his students was Austrian Eckart Witzigmann, one of four Chefs of the Centuryand the first German-speaking and the third non-French-speaking chef to receive three Michelin stars. Since 1977, the Bocuse d'Or has been regarded as the most prestigious award for chefs in the world (at least when French food is considered), and is sometimes seen as the unofficial world championship for chefs. Paul Bocuse has received numerous awards throughout his career, including the medal of Commandeur de la Légion d'honneur



Restaurants
Bocuse's main restaurant is the luxury restaurant l'Auberge du Pont de Collonges, near Lyon, which has been serving a traditional menu for decades. It is one of a small number of restaurants in France to receive the coveted three-star rating by the Michelin Guide. He also operates a chain of brasseries in Lyon, named Le Nord, l'Est, Le Sud and l'Ouest, each of which specializes in a different aspect of French cuisine. His son, Jérôme, manages the Chefs de France restaurant inside the French pavilion at Walt Disney World's EPCOT in Orlando,Florida.

Bocuse is considered an ambassador of modern French Cuisine. He was honored in 1961 with the title Meilleur Ouvrier de France. He had been apprenticed to Fernand Point, a master of classic French cuisine; and Bocuse dedicated his first book to him.