There’s a particular responsibility that comes with working on a historic restaurant brand.

When a name carries decades of memory, loyalty, and expectation, the goal isn’t reinvention for the sake of it — it’s relevance without erasure. That was the challenge, and the opportunity, with Richoux.

As a classic French restaurant brand, Richoux has long been associated with timeless brasserie dining. The relaunch required a careful balance: honouring its heritage while ensuring it felt confident, contemporary, and operationally fit for today’s market.

Starting with the Experience

At Lumière, we always begin with the guest journey. Before menus, before recipes, before training manuals — we ask a simple question:

What should it feel like to dine here today?

For Richoux, the answer lay firmly in French tradition: familiarity, comfort, elegance without stiffness. The task was not to modernise French food, but to execute it with clarity, restraint, and consistency.

Menu Design Rooted in Brasserie Classics

We curated a menu that celebrates classic French brasserie dishes — recognisable, dependable, and unapologetically French.

Rather than chasing trends, the focus was on balance: dishes that guests expect to see, cooked properly, priced sensibly, and designed to work in a busy service environment. A menu should be as strong operationally as it is emotionally — and the two are inseparable.

Consistency Behind the Scenes

Great food only becomes a great restaurant when it can be delivered, day in and day out, by different hands.

To support this, we developed detailed recipe cards and kitchen manuals, providing clarity on method, presentation, and portion control. These tools aren’t about rigidity — they’re about giving teams the confidence to deliver consistently, especially during peak service.

Training the Team, Not Just the Menu

A relaunch is only as strong as the people delivering it.

We worked closely with the Richoux team through hands-on training, ensuring service and kitchen standards aligned with the vision. From food knowledge to execution and flow of service, the aim was to embed standards that feel natural rather than imposed.

The Details Matter

Finally, we supported the selection and sourcing of crockery to complement the restaurant’s identity. These details are often overlooked, but they quietly reinforce brand, heritage, and atmosphere. When done well, they disappear into the experience — which is exactly the point.

A Thoughtful Return

The relaunch of Richoux was never about doing something loud or radical. It was about doing something right.

By respecting its past while sharpening its execution for the present, the restaurant re-emerged with clarity, confidence, and purpose — a French classic reintroduced to a modern audience without losing its soul.

That balance is where we do our best work.

Having worked with Lumiere on a number of projects over the years, they were our first choice to support the relaunch and roll out of the heritage brand Richoux. Their team helped develop the full menu, from cook-offs to specifications and allergen management, and were consistently engaged, collaborative, and aligned with the brief. Everything was delivered on time and to a very high standard. I’d have no hesitation in recommending them.

JAMES HITCHEN
Richoux

https://www.richoux.co.uk/