History
Perrier trained at La Pyramide in Vienne, France. He moved to the USA on November 17, 1967, at the age of 21, and started working in Philadelphia in the late 1960s. After its opening in 1970 at 1312 Spruce St. (Perrier was 23), Le Bec-Fin soon established a reputation as Philadelphia's finest restaurant with Perrier's Galette de Crabe and Quenelles de Brochet as signature highlights. By 1981, Le Bec-Fin was known as the leader of the "Philadelphia restaurant revolution". The restaurant moved to its current location on Walnut St. in 1983. Esquire described it as the best French restaurant in America and a 1994 Condé Nast reader's poll ranked it as the best restaurant in the country.
The Le Bec-Fin signature crab cake recipe can be found online, but is also featured in Georges Perrier's 1997 book, titled Le Bec-Fin Recipes. Perrier's cuisine favors traditional French ingredients with high quality produce from throughout the world. The wine list favors selections from the borders of France and some standouts from the new world. Christophe Tassan is the master sommelier.
Perrier made extensive changes to the restaurant after the Mobil Travel Guide reduced it to four star status in the 2001 Mobil Travel Guide. The interior was remodeled, the wine list expanded, and Perrier relinquished command of his restaurant to the head chef. Said Perrier to his staff, "Change everything but the chandeliers." In the 2003 guide, the fifth star was restored.
On April 4, 2008 Le Bec-Fin gave up its 5 star rating in favor of a more relaxed atmosphere. This loss drops the number of American 5 star restaurants to 16. The change to a more relaxed atmosphere includes à la carte dining as opposed to a price fixed menu with strict seating schedule.
In January 2009, the French government awarded Perrier the Legion d'Honneur.
Although he denied it at first, Georges Perrier put the building up for sale in 2010. During a dinner at the restaurant several months later, however, he announced that he would keep the restaurant open indefinitely. The fate of Le Bec-Fin was sealed, however, after an unfavorable local review, prompting Perrier to announce his retirement in February 2012 and immediately sell Le Bec-Fin to one of its former managers, Nicolas Fanucci, who re-opened the restaurant in June 2012 after remodeling and making minor adjustments. Master chef Walter Abrams, formerly of the restaurant French Laundry, leads the kitchen, stressing locally-grown ingredients and fresh produce.
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