Who is the chef at La Madeleine?

The kitchen of La Madeleine is led by Patrick Gauthier.

How do we get to La Madeleine from Beaune?

La Madeleine is about 2 h 24 from Beaune by road (228 km). With a private driver, the return trip from Beaune, with the car bringing you back after dinner, starts at €990 for the whole car, up to 4 guests.

Can the driver wait and drive us back after dinner?

Yes. Book the return trip: your driver takes you to La Madeleine, waits nearby while you dine, up to 3 hours, and drives you back to your hotel. Nobody in your party has to drive.

Do we need to book a table at La Madeleine?

Yes. Book your table directly with the restaurant, well ahead for weekends, the harvest and the Hospices de Beaune auction weekend in November. We book the car, not the table. Its official website (restaurant-lamadeleine.fr) has the booking details and opening days.

How much is dinner at La Madeleine?

According to the restaurant, menus start at €78 per person. Prices change with the seasons, so check before you go.

La Madeleine

Name: Côte Privée
Address: Beaune, 21200, FR
Price range: €€€

Patrick Gauthier's market cooking, on an island in the Yonne at Sens.

Sens
2 h 24 from Beaune
1 MICHELIN star
Menus from €78

€990there and back from Beaune with a private driver

Book a driver here

Sens — Photo: Christophe.Finot, CC BY-SA 3.0

At a glance

Location 180 km north-west of Beaune · Yonne

See it on the full map

Chef: Patrick Gauthier
Cuisine: Modern, market-led
MICHELIN Guide 2026: guide.michelin.com⁠
Official website: restaurant-lamadeleine.fr⁠

Getting there

Driver to dinner and back: 2 h 24 by road (228 km) each way, €990 there and back for the whole car.

Coming by train or plane? Transfers from stations and airports →

About the restaurant

La Madeleine is a one-Michelin-star restaurant in Sens, in the far north of the Yonne, about 2 hours 20 minutes from Beaune. Patrick Gauthier, who opened it in 1990 and won the star in 1999, moved it in 2017 to a modern waterside building at the tip of an island in the river. Go for market-driven cooking and a striking setting on the water.

The story

Born in Sens in 1961, Gauthier trained at La Vieille France in Chaumont and at La Tour d'Argent in Paris before opening La Madeleine in the town centre with Béatrice Gauthier in 1990. The star came in 1999.

After a quarter of a century in town, he moved the restaurant in 2017 to the edge of the Yonne. The interior reflects his many journeys to Japan and Scandinavia; he also opened a restaurant in Nagano in 1995. His own description of himself is simple: a cook above all.

The cooking

The day starts at the market, and the produce dictates the recipes, so menus shift with what the chef finds. The style is modern and clear, faithful to its Burgundian roots without being bound by them. Four menus rise from a seasonal set to a full tasting experience, and the sommelier can match wines to each course.

Your evening

How the evening works

1Book your table
Directly with the restaurant. Weekends, the harvest and the Hospices de Beaune auction in November fill up weeks ahead.
2Book the car
Choose the restaurant on our booking page: pickup at your hotel at the time you like, and a fixed price for the return trip.
3Back to your hotel
Your driver waits nearby while you dine, up to 3 hours, then drives you home. Nobody has to drive.

Driver to dinner and back Fixed-price trips from Beaune

Tips for your visit

Sens is about 2 hours 20 minutes from Beaune and some 120 kilometres from Paris, so it suits a transfer day between the two. Menus cost €78, €99, €139 and €177. The restaurant opens from Wednesday to Saturday, and bookings are taken only through its online reservation system. Reserve ahead; with a private driver, the long road becomes a comfortable part of the journey rather than a chore.

Telephone +33 3 86 65 09 31