Tahoe City, CA — In this outdoorsy, unincorporated lakeside town of roughly 3,000 residents, where traffic lights are few, you might be surprised to learn that one restaurant — just one — actually features big-city valet parking. And it’s complimentary, no less.

But at Savoie, it’s a necessity, given that since its opening in July, diners have been clamoring for reservations as far as six weeks in advance. When the doors open on any given night, there’s usually a queue of 40 walk-ins hoping to snag a seat, too. Even before it opened, Food & Wine magazine had already dubbed it one of “the most anticipated openings of the summer.”

In fact, when I was invited in as a guest of this fine-dining restaurant last week, a camera crew from Chef’s Warehouse was in the house, filming a documentary, as part of the restaurant supply company’s inaugural behind-the-scenes series on restaurants.

The attention and accolades are no surprise, not when you realize the French-California restaurant was opened by celebrated veteran Michelin-starred chef Mark Sullivan and his wife, pastry chef Allison Sullivan.

The two met at the Village Pub in Woodside, which Mark opened in 2001 with the Bacchus Management Group, of which he is still a partner. He helped steer the Village Pub, and subsequent restaurants, Spruce in San Francisco, and Selby’s in Atherton, to Michelin-star fame. After leaving the Village Pub, Allison went on to work at Michelin two-starred restaurants in San Francisco: the Fifth Floor, helmed by Laurent Gras; and Masa’s in San Francisco, under the tutelage of Ron Siegel. Later, she apprenticed at Pierre Herme in Paris.