Blu Ray
This is a splendid restaurant that overlooks the Mediterranean. It is cool and breezy in the evenings, plus the dishes put up by Chef Marcel Ravin are delicious as he combines his West Indian roots with muses from the Mediterranean land and sea.
The gourmet restaurant also boasts a Michelin star thanks to the chef’s inventive culinary style. To go on an epicurean adventure, diners should try the green papaya spaghetti in truffle Carbonara and duckling flavored with spicy cocoa served with roasted peach and yam. A five-course meal is priced at €108 per person
Alain Ducasse at Hotel de Paris
This famous restaurant reopened last April after three months of renovation and was previously named Le Louis XV Alain Ducasse. Service has always been impeccable and the new design adds to the rigorous yet warm harmony of banquet space.
The restaurant also now features a fresh menu created by chef Dominique Lory and Alain Ducasse. Regional authenticity, stunning produce and fundamental riviera flavors are still the recipes of choice that make this restaurant worth revisiting. Guests can sample unique bread made from truffle wheat; along with main courses such as French beef cooked in the fireplace served with aubergine and tender onions, or Mediterranean sea bass with fennel and local citrus. A gourmet menu of four half dishes selected by the chef, cheeses and dessert is priced at €310 per person.
Le Vistamar at Hotel Hermitage
Guests should definitely dress in their Sunday best before walking through this exquisite restaurant. Recommended for lunch, it is also best to be seated outside on the terrace for a clear view of the sea and port. Plus, it gets a little chilly indoors but the interior is sophisticated and classy with a white linen-covered banquette.
The Michelin-starred restaurant is helmed by chef Joël Garault and offers a seafood-focused menu. Dishes on the menu are inspired by a quote that says ‘one fish, one vegetable, one cooking style’. Choose from the red mullet, seared on its skin, or the gilt-head bream in a salt crust with orange jelly chutney of turnip, flavoured with Yuzu. Two gourmet menus are available, with a fine-featured ingredient of either lobster or truffle, both priced at €130 per person.
Joel Robuchon Monte-Carlo
Set in the iconic Hotel Metropole Monte-Carlo, this two Michelin-starred restaurant features the open-kitchen concept tantamount to other Joël Robuchon establishments around the world. Items on the menu are typically Mediterranean-style, besides the in-house bakery, serving fresh breads and pastries.
However, the first recommended dish to try on the menu is the tomato salad, which is possibly the best starter in Monaco. A mouthful of this evokes flavourful sensations one cannot begin to describe. To put it in mere words, it is sweet yet sour; intense yet subtle; and still, the simplicity of quality ingredients works terrifically. For a variety of dishes, diners can choose to indulge in a discovery menu that is priced at €199 per person.
Yoshi is the first Joël Robuchon Japanese restaurant that opened globally. Seeing as Joël Robuchon is Hotel Metropole’s chef and creator of restaurant concepts, Yoshi is his second restaurant that sits in a chic area within the hotel. It has a sushi bar and the space opens into a Japanese-inspired garden.
A healthy and modern take on the cuisine is offered, with dishes such as foie gras and grilled eel mille, lobster ravioli and marinated turnips and teppanyaki shrimps. There’s also a dessert menu featuring the Ki-ihigo, which is yuzu granité, lime espuma and fresh raspberries; and the Kudamono, consisting of fresh fruits and shiso sorbet. A Yoshi menu of starters, sushi, mains, rice and dessert is priced at €199 per person.
Sass Cafe
A really cool and hip place to visit when in Monaco is Sass Café. It does get a little crowded but the atmosphere is exciting and always changing. Choose to have dinner in an elegant area with the traditional Mediterranean and Italian cuisine on the menu.
For starters, go for the beef carpaccio and dig into the gorgonzola gnocchi as a main dish. Once the meal is over, Sass Cafe transforms into a buzzing nightclub where people are seen to dance on the couch.
Bouchon
Want to know where the locals go to eat and soak in the everyday life? Walk across the street from the Grimaldi Forum and arrive at Bouchon, a casual brasserie-style bistro specialising in traditional French cuisine.
The place captures the atmosphere of a typical bistro of the 1920s with a mix of marble tables, red-leather benches and wooden traditional chairs. Its bar is embellished with high wooden stools and, every evening at 6pm, Bouchon welcomes guests for an aperitif with a selection of wines and plates to share. On weekends, scrumptious brunch menus are available, including eggs benedict, pancakes, classic Sunday Roast, plates of smoked salmon and more.
Cipriani
For a posh dining experience, head to an Italian restaurant Cipriani located at the prestigious Mirabeau building. Rich mahogany walls, polished steel, mirrors, and marble floors are complemented by Cipriani’s signature brown leather chairs.
The ambiance is similar to that of a luxury yacht and the nautical theme is heightened by strong blue and white elements. There’s a floor upstairs that is exclusive to members of Club Cipriani Monte Carlo and features a private bar and sea-view terrace. Classics on the menu include risotto a la primavera and homemade baked green tagliolini Cipriani with veal ragù. A wide selection of fine wine is also available while on the terrace, Club Cipriani offers cigars and a whisky-tasting corner.
Monaco has quite a few other Gourmet places to satiate your taste buds. Let us know in the comments below about any of your favourite places here.
