is a restaurant in

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

, France, serving

French cuisine French cuisine () is the cooking traditions and practices from France. It has been influenced over the centuries by the many surrounding cultures of Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Belgium, in addition to the food traditions of the re ...

, holding a

Michelin star 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 establishments. The acquisition or loss of a ...

in 2023.

History

The restaurant was named after a stuffed crocodile that a local general brought back from overseas whilst on

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

's campaign in Egypt and Syria, and which is hung over the foyer. In 1921, the prominent French gastronomic journalist

Curnonsky Maurice Edmond Sailland (October 12, 1872, Angers, France – July 22, 1956, Paris), better known by his pen-name Curnonsky (nicknamed 'Cur'), and dubbed the Prince of Gastronomy, was one of the most celebrated writers on gastronomy in Franc ...

(nicknamed the "Prince of Gastronomy") wrote about Au Crocodile, and the stuffed crocodile in the foyer. Restaurant Crocodile-Strasbourg

Émile Jung and his wife Monique took over the restaurant in 1971 and, in 1989, it was awarded three

s. In 2002, it lost one of them. Jung said, "No words can ease the pain that eats at our hearts and that has killed our spirits". Some of Jung's colleagues took out a full-page advertisement to show their support. In 2023 the restaurant held one star. The restaurant has been used as a site for discussing international relations: in May 2010 the

Prime Minister of Albania The Prime Minister of Albania ( sq, Kryeministri i Shqipërisë), officially styled Prime Minister of the Republic of Albania ( sq, Kryeministri i Republikës së Shqipërisë), is the head of government of the Republic of Albania and the mos ...

Sali Berisha Sali Ram Berisha (; born 15 October 1944) is an Albanian conservative politician and former cardiologist who served as the second President of Albania from 1992 to 1997 and Prime Minister from 2005 to 2013. He is also the current chairman of t ...

and his opposition leader

Edi Rama Edi Rama (born Edvin Kristaq Rama, 4 July 1964) is an Albanian politician, painter, writer, former university lecturer, publicist and former basketball player, who has served as the 33rd and current Prime Minister of Albania since 2013 and chairm ...

were summoned to a meeting there by two leading members of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

. Chef Philippe Bohrer purchased the restaurant in 2010 from Jung for more than a million

euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...

s. Cedric Moulot became owner in 2015, with Franck Pelux as chef. in

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, Canada, was named after , after chef Michel Jacob visited the French restaurant as a young man.

Reception

Travel guide ''

Fodor's Fodor's is a publisher of English language travel and tourism information. Fodor's Travel and Fodors.com are divisions of Internet Brands. History Founder Eugene Fodor was a keen traveler, but felt that the guidebooks of his time were boring ...

'' described the dishes of chef Bohrer as "dazzling", and thought that the interior was "aglow". The review in travel guide ''

Frommer's Frommer's is a travel guide book series created by Arthur Frommer in 1957. Frommer's has since expanded to include more than 350 guidebooks in 14 series, as well as other media including an eponymous radio show and a website. In 2017, the company ...

'' also thought favourably of the interior of the restaurant, and described the dishes as "inventive", saying their "major problem comes only when the bill ... arrives". In 2018 Au Crocodile topped TripAdvisor's list of the World's best restaurants. In 2023 the restaurant held one

References

{{Coord, 48.583702, 7.747483, display=title French restaurants in France Michelin Guide starred restaurants in France Restaurants in Strasbourg Restaurants established in 1971 French companies established in 1971