A jetset lifestyle doesn’t have to be all private planes and decadent digs. In Paste Travel’s Jet-Set Bohemian series, we blend the best of high and low for just the right balance … enticing everyone from backpackers to luxury boutique hotel lovers to come along for the ride.
Nights are slowly getting shorter with summer sun lingering until late in the evening. In the South of France, this makes a moveable feast all the more feasible. The typical pre-dinner drinks, or apéro, that start around 6 p.m. in the spring are being pushed back in favor of more time basking on the beaches soaking up as much sun and rosé as possible before heading to “happy hour.” In Nice, the key is to saunter from terrace to terrace following the sun as it slowly sets, nibbling on cheese plates and charcuterie along the way. While any light-soaked terrace will do, sunset cocktails are even better when you’re catching the view from above. Take your libations up a level this summer with views from a seaside perch on cliffs from Croatia to the Côte d’Azur, posting up with your seasonal drink of choice where the scene is just as stunning as what you’re sipping.
Last summer in Nice, La Réserve, shaped like a schooner jutting out over the Mediterranean Sea, reopened its doors after a lengthy revamp that returned the restaurant to its 1930s roots. The spot was first built at the foot of Mont Boron near the Nice Port in 1862 before it was expanded out on to the rock of Aubray offering sweeping views over the water and the Bay of Angels. During the Belle Époque era, this restaurant was one of the city’s landmarks with a walkway connecting the fishing boat-shaped bar and restaurant to a gazebo on the rocks 20 feet above the waves. The place for ladies who lunched and indulged in afternoon tea was transformed in the 30s and 40s to a beach restaurant complete with diving boards that were abandoned in more recent times, becoming a training ground for trespassing divers and parkour traceurs, or practitioners.
The gazebo portion is long gone but the houseboat now serves as a fine dining dinner spot helmed by 31-year-old chef Sébastien Mahuet, who cut his teeth working at some of the best restaurants lining the Côte d’Azur, from gastronomique Château de la Chèvre d’Or in Eze Village to the glamorous Hôtel Métropole in Monaco. The result is a mix of Mediterranean classics with gourmet spins that pay homage to the seasonal flavors and ingredients found in the region, with dishes like herb-roasted lamb from the Hautes-Alpes, roasted wild mullet, and lemon from the nearby town of Menton served up three ways: as a crème brûlée tart, Italian meringue and sorbet-style. Dinner fills up fast, but lunch is still a local secret, with 30€ set menus dubbed Canon de Midi after the noon cannon that still goes off every day in Nice. Follow a late lunch with a cocktail at the mahogany-soaked lower level bar, cozying up on one of the deck’s couches sitting right on top of the sea.
Photo courtesy of Rene Rossignaud