La Napoulb-Plage
Every gourmet in Cannes knows an extraordinary restaurant on the terrace of the château at La Napoule-Plage. From far and wide along the shore epicures have beaten a path here to the door of LA MÈRE TERRATS. Her fame is widespread and doubtless well deserved. That word “doubtless” creeps in here because her establishment was enjoying its annual closing during my recent trip, and I can only report on hearsay. But her “press” is marvelous. Chez La Mére Terrats appears to be the best gastronomic bet in Cannes or its surroundings. Cannes itself has a dozen places, from the Ambassadeurs to remote, side-street bistros where a banquet or a presentable luncheon can be found. Some of the most agreeable restaurants for the wandering Sybarite string out along the boulevard Jean Hibert facing the plage Midi, the MARJOLAINE being my particular favorite.
Antibes
This old seaport, one of the least spoiled of Riviera towns, offers you two first-rate temples of la gourmandise. One is the TAVERNE PROVENCE, a charming, high-ceilinged spot in the old tradition, located a few steps away from the shaded place du Général de Gaulle. They have a delectable specialty here, côte de veau àla crème, which we recommend with fervor. Unctuous is the word for it! The celebrated Mediterranean loup gets handsomely grilled in this kitchen, and we found nothing but praise for the langouste thermidor. The local wines en carafe turned out to be pleasing and inexpensive.
Down by the colorful port in Antilles is as salty a restaurant as you will find on the entire coast, called CHEZ FÉLIX AU PORT. The “fruit of the sea” blooms forth in flavorful abundance here. You feel that Félix' great-grandfather must have worked on the formula for the fragrant bouillabaisse which is now served to Such perfection. Former Premier Herriot, mayor of Lyon and hence an eminent gourmet, paid Felix the compliment of saying that “this restaurant is worthy of being Lyonnais.” Many oilier distinguished clients, who include the more mondaine of Riviera celebrities, would agree. If you don't happen to be in the mood for fish, a toothsome omelette provençale is a memorable substitute. Félix will even turn out a classic chateaubriand for the individualist who warns it.
La Brague
The open, much-traveled strip of highway between Antibes and Nice offers a rare opportunity for a good roadside inn. A few years ago such a place was built on a sandy, colorless site in La Brague, just as hundreds of roadside inns have been built along our own American national routes. The comparison falters there, however. I do wish some of our beanery architects would study LA BONNE AUBERGE in La Brague to see the potentialities of the modern roadside inn. The place is enormously inviting, a delightful, sprawling Provençal house with verandas, pergolas, and terraces shimmering with flowers. There is a tempting shop selling pottery, old copper, antiques, and old tiles. You park your car in a discreet hidden court, then enter a series of quiet, handsomely furnished Provençal rooms. There you are greeted by a polished gentleman who seats you at a large table, impeccably appointed. What happens thereafter is even better than you might expect, for the food is absolutely superlative, worthy of the mast exacting taste. You are in the presence of the authentic haute cuisine in a recently built roadside hostelry. The miracle can happen.
La Colle-sur-Loup
Excursions into the foothills arc a part of everyone's Riviera sojourn. One of the most popular motor trips begins at Cagnes-sur-Mer and takes in the paintable hill towns of St. Paul, Vence, and La Colle. At lunchtime on this trip you should encounter gastronomic good fortune at the venerable HOSTELLERIE DU LION D'OR at Vence, the colorful town where Matisse has elected to live. (Picasso has bis studio in near-by Valouris.) The atmosphere is pleasant at the Lion d'Or, and the cooking deserves the French designation of soignée. More of an adventure awaits you in the scattered village of La Colle-sur-Loup, however. Here you will find a feudal and rather austere ex-monastery with a twelfth-century chapel. It has been convened into the HOTEL DE L'ABBAYE, and is now the culinary stronghold of Monsieur Joseph Vighi, a name to be reckoned with. The interior of the abbey is far from austere. You dine in the picturesque vaulted halls or under the flowered pergolas, depending upon the season. The aged wine cellars contain many worthy bottles, and you are almost certain to enthuse over Joseph's poulet, de grain grillé, his trout, ravioli, and young roast lamb. We found the prices very reasonable.
Nice
The ponderous panorama of restaurants and hotels in Nice poses a challenge which leaves your correspondent dangling on the ropes. In speaking of a mere handful of Nice restaurants, I must point out that there are probably plenty of others of comparable rank. But I couldn't try them all and remain this side of apoplexy!
The most pleasant gustatory experience in Nice, I am convinced, consists first of spending an hour or more before lunchtime roaming through the old food market Then, after your appetite has been whetted by the sight of so many delectable things and by the aroma of garlic, basil, saffron, and pimientos floating through the air, select one of the near-by sidewalk restaurants on the quai des Etats-Unis and enjoy a Niçois repast on a terrace overlooking the azure Bay of Angels. My choice of the four or five good restaurants along this sunny segment is the RESTAURANT RAYNAUD,59 quai des Etats-Unis. This is one of the best managed and most luxurious in Nice, yet the prices are very fair, especially the prix fixe meals, which are generous and beautifully served. Monsieur Raynaud, who directs other restaurants in Nice, maintains an atmosphere of cordiality and solicitude for his guests, which is most pleasant. The service is alert, and the cooking, which has a noticeable Italian accent, is almost regal.
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