A taste of Nice: À table!

Published: January 31, 2025 by Gill Harris 960

Traci Nelson, of French Detours, takes us on the second part of her foodie tour of Nice, visiting local restaurants and looking at what’s on the menu …

What’s for dinner?

Decoding a menu, even if it is in English, can be a bit tricky if you know nothing about the local dishes. You will no doubt see an abundance of pasta, seafood and fish – sea bream (daurade), sea bass (loup) and sole (the same in French) are the most common. But here are some other specialities that merit a more detailed description.

Farcis: Tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, peppers and onions are hollowed out and filled with a meat stuffing before being roasted in the oven to meld the flavors and textures. This is one of my absolute favourite dishes. They can be found at deli shops and many restaurants.

Soupe au pistou: Pistou is the French equivalent of pesto. The basil-garlic oil is heaped into the centre of a soup comprised mostly of vegetables, including string and white beans, zucchini, tomatoes and potatoes along with pasta and Italian sausage.

Ravioli à la daube: If you try one local dish, make it this one. Many restaurants serve this, but if you have access to a kitchen, buy yours at Maison Barale, at 7 rue Sainte-Réparate, and bring it home to make it. Note, though, that Maison Barale is only open from Wednesday to Saturday. The fresh pasta is made daily and the line out the door will attest that it is both authentic and delicious. Somehow beef stew is gently wrapped into the most delicate pasta. The friendly staff will tell you how much you need for your group, and ask if you would like the daube sauce with or without meat. (I get one of each and mix them). They will give you detailed instructions to prepare it perfectly. This is the epitome of comfort food!

Ratatouille: This slow-roasted vegetable stew was made famous around the world by the Disney film, but it is a true classic in Provence and will be found as a side dish on many plates. Mediterranean cuisine is quite healthy and fresh, and this blend of eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, onions and bell peppers gives you a great veggie count for the day.

Restaurants

Finding your favorite restaurants in a city with so many possibilities can be both daunting and the best time you have ever had! I can’t possibly begin to mention all of the amazing meals we have enjoyed, but here are two restaurants that you may want to include on your list.

Franchin: It was a recommendation that brought us here the first time, and the exceptional experience we have time and again makes it our favorite restaurant in Nice. Chef Antoine, his friendly staff and adorable Jack Russell Terrier now know us well. Located at 10 rue Massenet, nestled between rue de France and the Promenade des Anglais, the location is perfect, and the ambience warm and inviting. The menu changes seasonally, and we always try the new cocktails and appetisers. The courgette flower fritters would be too pretty to eat if they weren’t so delicious! They offer options for terre et mer, and the blend of flavours and textures is surprising and new. Octopus (poulpe) is a local speciality and no one does it better. I always save room for the profiteroles as the ceremonious pouring of the hot chocolate sauce over the delicate choux filled with ice cream is almost as satisfying as the first bite.

JAN: Every now and then you simply have to treat yourself to a Michelin-star restaurant. This one is quite special – a fusion of South Africa and the south of France, in terms of culture, customs and flavours. Your meal begins with a South African custom (I’ll let you be surprised), followed by course after course of flavours that have never played together so well. And then there is the cheese room. I have seen amazing cheese carts, but never an entire room dedicated to cheese. You cross the street and enter another tiny restaurant, with small tables around the perimeter and an enormous table in the center, lavished with cheese and accoutrements. You can serve yourself again and again, and retreat to a cosy table to enjoy what surely must be cheese heaven.

Gourmet adventures

Cooking Class

What better way to get to know the regional cuisine than with a cooking class run by locals? My husband, daughter and I enrolled for a three-hour dinner course and arrived at the home of Rebecca and Laurent, in the hills of Nice, with a sense of excitement and curiosity. The view was amazing and our gracious hosts made us feel right at home while we waited for other participants to arrive. Everything was well-organised, and we worked in teams to prepare farcis, homemade pizza and tiramisu. Rebecca showed us the secrets to making each dish a success, and we enjoyed every bite with our new friends from around the world. It was a special evening we won’t soon forget!

Bellet wine tour

Vineyards can be found almost anywhere in France, but in the city of Nice? High up on a hilltop lies the Château de Bellet, where the AOP Bellet wines are grown. You can do a tasting in the chapel, built in honour of Agnès Roissard de Bellet in 1873, or visit one of the eight other domaines that carry this AOP label.

For a decidedly more adventurous day, hop on an e-bike and tour Domaine du Fogolar ‘Collet de Bovis’. The tour begins in Vieux Nice, where you buy your picnic lunch. It is a bit of an adrenaline rush to dodge the tourists in town before hitting the wide expanse of the Promenade des Anglais. You will have plenty of power to get you up the winding hills, where panoramic views await. After some well-deserved photo stops, you reach the vineyards. Jean Spizzo, a former university professor, explains the process, offers a tasting, then walks you through the vineyards to a charming picnic spot among the vines. We were delighted to have our well-deserved lunch with a glass of wine, and meet new friends from around the globe. The decent is much more rapid, bien sûr, and yes it is possible to attach a case of wine to each side of the bike!

Arriving back in Vieux Nice, it is surely time for apéro and then to start making dinner plans. You are now a savvy local with a whole new palate of flavors to choose from.

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