Louis XIV created the King’s Kitchen Garden in 1678, within the historical confines of his grandiose palace, the Château de Versailles. Jean-Baptiste de La Quintinye, a former lawyer who was impassioned with horticulture, administered the impressive project, according to the King’s vision. The new folly required hefty, landscape remodeling, from 1678 to 1683, and resulted in the creation of a ‘new’ kitchen garden along, what was familiarly called, ‘The Lake of the Swiss’.

Within a short lapse of time, Mr. De La Quintinye presented the King with a rare and succulent selection of melons, strawberries, and figues as well as eighty different types of pears, and thirty different types of apples.

Since its creation, the KING'S KITCHEN GARDEN extends over nine hectares, and is organized around the central Grand Carre, or Great Square, which comprises sixteen square lots that encircle a basin. Each square lot is lined with fruit trees and vegetables are planted in its center. Beyond the Grand Carre, a succession of vast gardens, adorned by magnificent fruit trees, invite the visitor to discover France’s traditional and elegant art of gardening.

The prestigious domain is also the home of the ‘Ecole Nationale Superieure du Paysage’, or National Landscape School, which has been invested with the mission of perpetuating both the KING'S KITCHEN GARDEN and France’s traditional horticulture techniques.

Distinguished as a ‘Remarkable Site of Taste’ by the Conseil National des Arts Culinaires, or National Council of Culinary Arts, the KING'S KITCHEN GARDEN adheres to high standards of quality, producing rare fruits and vegetables that offer both authentic character and exceptional taste.