Langan's Brasserie is a restaurant situated on

Stratton Street Stratton Street is a street in the Mayfair district of the City of Westminster, London. It runs from Berkeley Street in the north to Piccadilly in the south. History Stratton Street started to be built in 1693 on land occupied at some time b ...

Mayfair Mayfair is an area of Westminster, London, England, in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. It is between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane and one of the most expensive districts ...

, London. Opened by the Irish entrepreneur Peter Langan on 20 October 1976 in partnership with the actor

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, 14 March 1933) is a retired English actor. Known for his distinct Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over Michael Caine filmography, a career that spanned eight decades an ...

, the Brasserie (which had previously housed the ornate restaurant ''Le Coq d'Or'') quickly attracted celebrities and became hugely successful. Langan's Brasserie remains one of the most popular restaurants in London today.

History

Peter Langan (who gave his name to the Brasserie) was born in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

in 1941. After moving to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in the early 1960s, Langan began his catering career working at Odin's restaurant at 26 Devonshire Street. Langan had been lodging nearby to Odin's and when the proprietor, James Benson, was killed in an accident in 1966, he took over the kitchen for Benson's wife, Kirsten. Langan transformed Odin's in both its style of cuisine and its decor.

Patrick Procktor Patrick Procktor (12 March 1936 – 29 August 2003) was a British painter and printmaker. Early life Patrick Procktor was born in Dublin, the younger son of an oil company accountant, but moved to London when his father died in 1940. From the ...

, an artist who lived near and later married Kirsten Benson, provided a number of watercolours to hang on the walls of Odin's alongside the works of other artists encouraged to 'eat down' their work. After purchasing Benson's share of Odin's, Langan created a larger Odin's at the premises next door in Devonshire Street. Opening early in 1973, the larger Odin's maintained the tradition of serving hearty cuisine in an environment surrounded by original artworks. Odin's quickly became a very popular dining location and proved profitable enough to permit Langan to embark on what became his most successful venture, Langan's Brasserie. Peter Langan wanted to bring Parisienne cafe society to London and chose the former site of Le Coq d'Or restaurant in

, Mayfair as its location.

, a customer and friend of Peter Langan, became his business partner and the pair transformed the site with original artwork, brighter lighting with mismatched lamps and relaxed the atmosphere of the restaurant (there was no dress code for diners).

Richard Shepherd Sir Richard Charles Scrimgeour Shepherd (6 December 1942 – 19 February 2022) was a British politician who was Member of Parliament for Aldridge-Brownhills from 1979 to 2015. A Eurosceptic, Shepherd was one of the Maastricht Rebels that ha ...

, the former head chef at the

Michelin-starred The ''Michelin Guides'' ( ; ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The ''Guide'' awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few restaurants in certain geographic ...

Capital Hotel in London, joined the Caine and Langan partnership in 1977 and introduced a menu that has changed little since. The restaurateur Chris Corbin was an early manager of the Brasserie. A notorious

alcoholic Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World Hea ...

, Peter Langan died at the age of 47 on 7 December 1988, several weeks after a fire at his home in

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

which he is alleged to have started himself. Langan's name was retained by the restaurant and Richard Shepherd subsequently bought Caine's share of the company to become the sole owner of Langan's Brasserie and the group's other restaurants. Langan's Brasserie is particularly noted for its artwork. Its walls are adorned with works by artists, including

David Hockney David Hockney (born 9 July 1937) is an English Painting, painter, Drawing, draughtsman, Printmaking, printmaker, Scenic design, stage designer, and photographer. As an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considere ...

(who also designed the menu),

Lucian Freud Lucian Michael Freud (; 8 December 1922 – 20 July 2011) was a British painter and draughtsman, specialising in figurative art, and is known as one of the foremost 20th-century English portraitists. His early career as a painter was inf ...

Francis Bacon Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (; 22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626) was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England under King James I. Bacon argued for the importance of nat ...

Timmy Mallett Timmy Mallett (born 18 October 1955) is an English television presenter, broadcaster, author and artist. He is known for his striking visual style, colourful glasses and shirts, and a giant pink foam mallet (known as "Mallett's Mallet"), as we ...

Gerald Moira Gerald Edward Moira (26 January 1867 – 2 August 1959) was an English painter who became best known for his murals. Gerald Moira was born in London, the son of a former Portuguese diplomat who became a miniature painter. He first exhibited at ...

and

. Upstairs at the Brasserie, is a room known as 'The Venetian Room' which features murals by

specially commissioned by Peter Langan.

Other Langan's restaurants

The Langan's brand has been expanded to include: Odin's Bar & Bistro (a restaurant acquired by Langan in 1967) which are next door to each other in Devonshire Street in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...

but closed in March 2013 and Shepherd's Bar & Bistro in Marsham Court,

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

, which was opened in 1993. He also collaborated with Karen Jones and Roger Myers who 'did' three restaurants with Langan, each called Langan's Bar and Grill, in the city, Mayfair and Hampton Court. Two years later they sold Theme Holdings. Previously, the Langan's chain had included another Langan's Bistro in Paston Place,

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

, but this has since closed. Another Langan's Brasserie was opened in 1986 by Peter Langan in

Coggeshall Coggeshall ( or ) is a town and civil parish in the Braintree district, in Essex, England, between Braintree and Colchester on the Roman road Stane Street and the River Blackwater. In 2001 it had a population of 3,919. It has almost 300 li ...

, Essex, near his home. After Langan's death in 1988, the Head Chef of the restaurant, Mark Baumann adopted the restaurant. In July 1998, Richard Shepherd opened Langan's Coq d'Or on

Old Brompton Road Old Brompton Road is a major street in the South Kensington district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London. It starts from South Kensington tube station, South Kensington Underground station and runs south-west, through a ma ...

Earls Court Earl's Court is a district of Kensington in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in West London, bordering the rail tracks of the West London line and District line that separate it from the ancient borough of Fulham to the west, the ...

, which is now operating as Rocca restaurant.. Shepherd died on 23 November 2022, at the age of 77.

References

External links

Official website
Restaurants in London Buildings and structures in the City of Westminster Restaurants established in 1976 1976 establishments in England {{Restaurants in London