A Stylish Evening at Maxim’s Gives Us a Taste of La Belle Époque
It was pouring rain, yet no weather hindrances were to stop guests from attending Wednesday’s ball at Maxime’s, a highly fashionable event paying tribute to the tradition that is the pride of the venue. Maxim’s legend begins in May 1893 when a young Parisian comedian, Irma de Montigny, pushed open the door of a little bistro on 3 rue Royale, launched just a few days earlier by Maxime Gaillard, a former waiter. It became the place par excellence for the royal, wealthy and famous Parisians to socialize during the Belle Époque. Over time, Maxim’s became the heart of the Parisian party scene, until it fell into a long period of disrepair around the 2000s. Taken over by Laurent de Gourcuff’s Paris Society group, who restored the glory of the place with the help of Cordelia De Castellane. The restaurant, prized for its unrivalled cuisine and ambience, rose from the ashes in autumn 2023. Last night, it hosted THE ultimate party of Paris Fashion Week. A hot guest list, put together by Lucien Pagès, the master of Parisian PR, showed up to delight us with a genuine parade of outfits, which will become part of the place’s history, needless to say, all strictly following the dress code, which called for a “dress to impress” attitude.
We crossed paths with Jared Leto, Nicolas Maury, Catherine Baba, Martin Solveig, Emmanuel Perrotin, Coco Rocha, Catherine Baba, Vincent Lacoste, Ellen von Unwerth, Suzanne Lindon, Pierre de Maere, Victor Weinsanto, Pierre Painchaud, Alison Toby, Thomas Roussel, and Sabine Getty.
Photos: Jean Picon and Astrid Staes
