BRAZIER'S gastronomic genius captured the hearts and stomachs of 20th century giants as diverse as Marlene Dietrich and Charles de Gaulles.
As the chef's 123rd birthday is marked with a steam-clouded Google Doodle, we ask who "la mère Brazier" was and how she scaled the culinary pantheon.
French chef Eugénie Brazier was the first woman to get the three Michelin starred rating
Who was Eugénie Brazier?
Eugénie Brazier was a famed French chef who became the first woman to earn three Michelin stars in 1933.
Her culinary expertise turned the city of Lyon into the French capital of gastronomy.
Born in La Tranclière in eastern France in 1895, she lost her mother at the age of ten and was taken onto a rural farm where she learned to cook in the Bresse region style.
Aged 20, she took on several apprentices to hone her trade, gaining a reputation for her skills at La Brasserie du Dragon in Lyon.
Paris Match - Getty Eugenie Brazier in 1968. Nine chefs gathered to cook her lunch as a thank you for 60 years of her cooking
With 12,000 francs capital, she started her first restaurant La mère Brazier in 1921.
She also attained the three Michelin star rating for the Alpine foothills at Col de la Luère - an achievement unmatched for 36 years.
Brazier's incredible dishes had a distinguished following - from Charles de Gaulle to Marlene Dietrich.
Dietrich was said to be a great fan of her Langouste Belle Aurore, a whole sweet lobster drenched in brandy and cream.
Brazier developed Lyonnaise cuisine into a national phenomenon favoured by the French elite, a tradition which her student Paul Bocuse later turned into a worldwide success.
She died in 1977, at the age of 81.
Eugenie Brazier's 123d birthday has been marked with a steam-cloud Google Doodle on the occasion of the French chef's 123rd birthday on June 12
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What is a Google Doodle?
In 1998, the search engine founders Larry and Sergey drew a stick figure behind the second 'o' of Google as a message to that they were out of office at the Burning Man festival and with that, Google Doodles were born.
The company decided that they should decorate the logo to mark cultural moments and it soon became clear that users really enjoyed the change to the Google homepage.
In that same year, a turkey was added to Thanksgiving and two pumpkins appeared as the 'o's for Halloween the following year.
Now, there is a full team of doodlers, illustrators, graphic designers, animators and classically trained artists who help create what you see on those days.
Among the Doodles published in 2018 were ones commemorating cartographer Abraham Ortelius, Egyptian actor Omar Sharif and St Patrick's Day.
Earlier in the year, the search giant celebrated the Paralympics in 2018 in Pyeongchang with an animated design celebrating each of the sports the winter Paralympians will compete in.
Michelin star winner Eugénie Brazier cooks and hosts a congress of biostatistician in her own restaurant
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Described as a "the mother of French cooking" and hailed for her fresh, simple cuisine, Eugenie Brazier would have been celebrating her birthday on June 12.
In her honour, Google is changing its logo in 11 countries to a doodle, or illustration, of her with a steam-clouded Doodle.
This is her story:
Orphan at an early age
Born in the Burgundian village of Bourg-en-Bresse in 1895 on a farm near Lyon, Brazier became an orphan at age ten.
Raised by impoverished peasants, Brazier began working in the fields at a very young age.
She attended school sporadically, but would define herself as someone "ready for anything that might challenge" her.
At the age of 19, she left for Lyons and got a job as a domestic before going to work in a restaurant. She started working for La Mere Fillioux, the celebrated provincial chef who employed only women.
At age 26, the cook opened first restaurant of her own, inspired by Mere Fillioux's simple menu.
The restaurant became a culinary destination, attracting French Presidents and Prime Ministers as well as celebrities.
Michelin stars
In 1928, she opened Le Col de la Luere, and her emphasis in simplicity led Michelin Guides, the oldest European hotel and restaurant reference guide, to give her restaurants the coveted three-star ranking as early as 1935.
This was the first time a woman would be recognised with the most stars simultaneously.
The New York Times obituary, said she is remembered for turning down a citation for the French Legion of Honor, feeling, "it should be given out for doing more important things than cooking, and doing the job as you're supposed to."
In 1968, however, Michelin demoted her Le Col de la Luere restaurant to two stars, and Brazier retired four years later.
According to the New York times, Brazier's granddaughter, AnneMarie, said losing the Michelin star really hurt: "Truthfully, it hurt her a lot. The idea of celebrity didn't appeal to her a bit, but here was somebody saying her work was less well done. That was bad."
I have always been mindful of who I am Brazier
Two years before she died in 1977, Brazier began working on a cookbook.
It remained unfinished for decades, but got published by the family members in 2009 under the title Les secrets de la Mere Brazier.
Google has celebrated what would’ve been the 123rd birthday of French chef Eugénie Brazier with a unique Google Doodle.
She is considered one of France’s finest chefs and is credited with turning the city of Lyon into the country’s culinary capital.
But just who was Eugénie Brazier? Here’s all you need to know about who she was and what a Google Doodle is.
Google's new Doodle recently marked what would've been Eugenie Brazier's 123rd birthday
Who was Eugénie Brazier?
Eugénie Brazier was a celebrated French chef notable for being the first woman to earn three Michelin stars back in 1933.
She was born on June 12, 1895 in La Tranclière, France. Following the death of her mother when she was just ten years old, Brazier relocated to a farmstead where she soon learned how to cook in the Bresse regional style. By age 20, she had already gained a positive reputation for her cooking skills at a Brasserie du Dragon in the city of Lyon, also taking on numerous apprentices.
Brazier later started her first restaurant called La Mère Brazier in 1921, which quickly drew critical acclaim that remains to this day.
She later obtained the coveted three-star Michelin rating and became known as the chef of choice for many of the France’s elite, including French military leader and President Charles de Gaulle. Brazier almost single-handedly revolutionized the cuisine of Lyon into becoming known as the finest in France and later a global phenomenon thanks to students like the late Paul Bocuse.
Brazier passed away on March 2, 1977, but not before radically transforming French cuisine and making a name for herself as one of the world’s most notable chefs.
At Bentley's on #iwd2018 we are raising a glass to La Mère Brazier, Eugénie Brazier, the first woman to earn 3 Michelin stars. Famous for many things, including her terrific seafood dish langouste belle aurore; a decadent whole lobster in brandy and cream. pic.twitter.com/KuhTCyWork — Bentley's Oyster Bar (@Bentleys_london) March 8, 2018
What is a Google Doodle?
Google Doodle’s are temporary changes to Google’s homepage logo to commemorate special events, holidays and people.
The first Google Doodle was created back in 1998 to mark the Burning Man festival. Initially designed by Google cofounders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, they were later designed by a group of outside contractors until a special in-house team called Doodlers was established specifically to create Doodles on a regular basis.
Popular holidays such as Christmas and St. Patrick’s Day are typically marked with Google Doodles. In recent years, they’ve also appeared for events such as Pi Day, the Spring Equinox, the Commonwealth Games, St. George’s Day and more.
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The Google Doodle for June 12 celebrates what would be the 123rd birthday of Eugénie Brazier - one of the most famous chefs in French history.
In 1933 Brazier became the first woman to earn three coveted Michelin stars and helped turn Lyon into France's capital of gastronomy.
Known as as 'la mere Brazier', the then-26-year old opened her first restaurant in 1921 and helped to turn Lyonnaise cuisine into a national phenomenon.
Chef Brazier was also the first person to attain three Michelin stars at two restaurants, one being her first restaurant La Mere Brazier, which is on Rue Royale, the second in the foothills of the Alpines at Col de la Luere.
She had only been in professional kitchens for 15 years.
(Image: Google)
Holding a total of six stars she set the record in the Michelin guide.
In 1998, her 65-year reign came to an end when Alain Ducasse won three stars each for his namesake restaurant in Paris and the Louis XV restaurant in Monte Carlo, reports Eater.com.
Brazier attended school sporadically, but recalled in a posthumously released book as always being "ready for anything that might challenge me."
Her mother, whose cooking influenced her so much, died when she was 10 and Brazier had a child out of wedlock at 19.
During the First World War Brazier worked as a nanny in Lyon and took over as family cook after finding an affinity for it. Soon she was at t La Mère Fillioux - a "high-class establishment" - where she learned many of the skills that would make her famous.
Seven years after arriving in Lyon, aged 26, she bought a small grocery store and turned it into La Mere Bazier.
According to Eater.com in the 12 years before the restaurant received its three stars, it was a culinary destination, attracting French Presidents and Prime Ministers.
wo years before she died in 1977, Brazier began work on a cookbook. It was unfinished for decades until her family saw it through to completion, publishing it under the title Les secrets de la Mère Brazier in 2009.
The English version — La Mere Brazier: The Mother of Modern French Cooking — was published in 2014 and is equal parts history, recipes, photos, and tributes.
The acclaimed chef, born in 1895 on a farm and living through both world wars, died on March 2 1977 in Sainte-Foy-les-Lyon, a suburb of Lyon.
