Bosi grew up in Lyon, France, where his parents owned a bistro, giving him his first taste of gastronomy. However, their simple restaurant was in stark contrast to the Michelin-starred restaurants in Lyon and Paris he would go on to train and work at, including La Pyramide and Passard’s L’Arpège, where he was part of the team that won the latter restaurant its third Michelin star.
On moving to the UK in the late 1990s he took up the position of Sous Chef at Overton Grange in Ludlow, Shropshire. He was soon promoted to Head Chef, with the restaurant winning a Michelin star in 1999. In 2000 he opened his own restaurant, Hibiscus, also in Ludlow and again, Michelin quickly recognised Bosi’s talent, awarding a first star after just a few months and then a second in 2004.
In 2007 Bosi relocated Hibiscus to London’s Mayfair where it had a successful run, winning two Michelin stars, before closing in 2016. Since then, Bosi has headed up Claude Bosi at Bibendum at the old Michelin headquarters in Chelsea, which was awarded two Michelin stars in 2017 and has retained them since.
Restaurants
Claude Bosi at Bibendum is a modern French restaurant in London’s Chelsea, which holds two Michelin stars as of 2017. Housed in an iconic Art Deco building dating back to 1911, once the headquarters of Michelin itself, the restaurant, which sits on the first floor, has huge stained-glass windows, which flood the dining room with natural light. There is also an oyster bar on the ground floor.
The restaurant offers several tasting menus and a simpler market menu for lunch on certain days. Diners can expect the best seasonal produce the UK has to offer and from further afield, including Bosi’s native France. Plating is elegant and service is at the level you’d expect from a restaurant of this caliber.
Bosi also has several other restaurants in the UK capital: Brooklands, a two-Michelin star rooftop restaurant and bar at the Peninsula hotel; Josephine, a Lyonnaise-style bouchon; and Socca, a French Provençal bistro.
Recipes and dishes
Bosi’s style pays homage to his Lyonnaise roots, utilizing modern techniques and the best produce available. Offal is elevated to Michelin-star level (including a tripe dish that is a tribute to his mother) at Claude Bosi at Bibendum while other classically luxurious ingredients like foie gras and caviar are often found on the menu.
One of the most iconic and eye-catching dishes at Claude Bosi at Bibendum is the duck jelly with white onion, smoked sturgeon, and a generous helping of caviar, a dish that “will always be on the menu.” Other favorites include the Bibendum egg–an eggshell filled with ingredients such as sweetcorn, mushroom cream, coconut cream, and curry powder or lamb powder—while diners can also expect dishes in the vein of French quail with Scottish girolles or a double chocolate soufflé.
At Josephine, the cooking is more relaxed, in the Bouchon style, with classic dishes such as steak tartare, French onion soup, and rotisserie chicken.
Bosi is often seen on UK TV on shows such as the BBC’s Saturday Kitchen and was named AA Chef’s Chef of the year in 2018.
