44 Best Restaurants in Provence, France

Double Michelin–starred chef Michel Kayser adds a personal touch both to the elegant modern dining room and library sitting room where you can enjoy a drink before tucking into local specialties and seasonal menus transformed into delicious works of art. Scallops from the Camargue coast served with a luscious ravioli stuffed with celery cream and black garlic; plump white asparagus from the sands of Aigues Mortes with a sabayon and elderberry vinegar; and thyme-infused Aveyron lamb with carrots, turnip, and kumquat may not leave room for tender local strawberries from the Gard infused with kaffir lime served with sage sorbet. The terrace opens to an extensive park with century-old trees, and often apricots and peaches plucked from the overhanging branches will appear on your plate, magically transformed into some delicious creation. Though the restaurant is outside Nîmes proper, it's a favorite Provence pilgrimage spot. 

Architect, artist, creator, whatever you call him, one thing's for sure—you won't soon forget the master chef who was awarded a Michelin star within nine months of opening his namesake restaurant. Dishes such as charred satay tuna in tapioca speckled with bright green fish eggs and served with wasabi ice cream showcase his experience working in French, African, and Asian kitchens. When you sit at one of the 24 seats in the minimalistic setting, a small card on the table provides you with a choice of four set menus. Following your selection, Mazzia will serve a series of inspired dishes. Dining here will set you back some, but you will not find its likeness anywhere in France.

Nadia Sammut, the third generation of female chefs in her family and the second to hold a Michelin star, crafts a cuisine of such sensuality, refinement, and soul that her dedicated fan base stretches well beyond France. Sammut's passion for fresh, local, and "living" foods is backed by the notion that each ingredient expresses itself differently, and she creates extraordinary flavor pairings in the dishes on her prix-fixe tasting menus. Options such as radishes prepared four ways on a melt-in-your mouth buckwheat cake or lightly crusted Camargue oysters perfumed with shiso and yuzu in an iodized gelée are revelations. The Auberge also has five charming, Provençal-style guest rooms in case you want to stay overnight and enjoy a stellar gluten-free breakfast.

Though this brasserie is less formal (and less expensive) than its sister restaurant, three-star La Villa Madie, its dishes are no less tasty. Depending on what's in season and available from local growers and fishermen, the menu in the handsome dining room or on the terrace might include artisanal sausages and braised fennel with squid-ink gnocchi; tandoori monkfish medallions with asparagus, lime crème Chantilly, and Indian spices; or the catch of the day straight from the wood-fired oven. The three-course €60 lunch menu is a steal, and, unlike many area restaurants, this one is open year-round.

Set in an 18th-century Provençal mas once owned by the grand-mère of one of the owners, this countrified restaurant is a short drive outside the city but well worth the effort. Sit inside at wooden tables or out under towering plane trees to enjoy delicious dishes made with locally sourced ingredients that mix classic recipes (yes, from Tata Simone) with modern touches. Everything, including the bread, warm from the oven, evokes the hearty home-cooked dishes of old Provence.

Duende, that irresistible magnetic force radiated by a performer to transport an audience, is precisely what two Michelin–star chef Nicolas Fontaine (channeling Pierre Gagnaire who designed the menus) conjures in the dining room of the Art Deco–era Hotel L'Imperator. A sophisticated spot to be sure, but it's also expressive of Nîmes's earthy, independent spirit in dishes that pair the exotic with the local: Mediterranean jumbo shrimp à l'Amontillado with local Camargue rice and mango in a passion fruit emulsion or a butter-poached catch of the day with camus artichokes, green olives, and a parsley-anchovy sauce. Lamb comes from the nearby Alpilles, and produce is sourced from the Gard's top organic farmers.

At one of Aix's best "bistronomic" (gastronomic bistro) eateries, a stone's throw from the Cours Mirabeau, diners swoon for the small but delicious and beautifully presented selection of upscale French classics—crusted lobster with feta and coriander, squash samosas and homemade goose pâté, or roasted veal giblets with gouda-cauliflower and black truffle. Don't be alarmed by the small à la carte menu; it means you're only served what's market fresh that day. Do go for one of the tasting menus, as they're by far the best deal.

The vaulted dining room provides an excellent backdrop for camera-ready "haute couture" dishes that taste as good as they look and have garnered the chef a Michelin star. For an atmosphere that's a little less formal, the colorful Bistr'AU offers a fine prix-fixe menu; both restaurants are part of the Jérôme Nutile empire—which also includes a hotel and a boutique—that's set on a pretty old farm just outside the city.

At this gastropub hot spot in the heart of the city, chef Julien Gleize applies light, playful, modern touches to dishes that are steeped in French tradition, made with local ingredients, and beautifully presented. Options might include rabbit farci perfumed with wild cèpes and served over a cloud of whipped potatoes and shallot confit or wild salmon caramelized in olive oil with watercress, black sesame seeds, and luscious cream of corn.

Chef Laurent Deconinck won his first Michelin star in 2018, proving to the culinary mainstream what Provence gourmands have known all along—that this is one of the region's most coveted tables. In the elegant dining room, you're assured of a stellar meal and superb wines (the sommelier is expert at pairing the local nectars, as the winemakers all flock here) in a convivial atmosphere. The restaurant is set on a leafy square in the center of the village, and its spacious terrace is a mythical spot for spending a long afternoon or evening under the plane trees or Provence stars. If you feel like making a night of it, L'Oustalet offers three stylish guest rooms.

Year after year, diners return to this temple to haute cuisine for updated versions of dishes they might have first tried three decades ago. This was the first establishment outside of the Riviera to earn three Michelin stars, and, under legendary chef Raymond Thuillier, it rose from being the dining room of a small country inn to a restaurant whose guest list has included leading artists, movie stars, and heads of state (Picasso, Queen Elizabeth, Churchill, and Harry Truman all dined here). Helmed by Thuillier's grandson, Jean-André Charial, and his gifted protégé, Glenn Viel, the restaurant maintains two Michelin stars. The refined classic dishes are not completely free from the ingredients and preparations of the past, but they do now highlight organic vegetables fresh from the extensive kitchen gardens.

Sophisticated yet comfortable, this organic restaurant, 12 km (7½ miles) south of Arles at the entrance of the Camargue, has a fetching dining room that extends to an outdoor area with large, family-style picnic tables under a canopy and overlooking extensive gardens. The mix of modern and French-country dishes on master chef Armand Arnal's prix-fixe menus are made using ingredients grown right on the property.

A decor that mixes distressed walls with minimalist industrial-style lighting and sleek designer chairs is your first clue that this neobistro and wine bar in Marseille's emerging Noailles neighborhood is impossibly hip. British chef Harry Cummins, lately of Paris's gastronomic mecca Frenchie, uses local, seasonal ingredients to craft subtle, imaginative dishes that are highly satisfying to all yet also sensitive to the needs of vegetarians and those with food allergies. The three-course lunch menu (€35) and the five-course dinner menu (€62), served inside or on the secluded outdoor terrace, are good introductions.

The dazzling new La Mère Germaine restaurant earned a Michelin star within seven months of reopening as part of the hotel of the same name, and now, with two-star Belgian chef Christophe Hardiquest at the helm, it has further refined its locavore offerings. Dishes on the seasonal, five-course menus (€98 at lunch, €118 at dinner) might include celery root and shredded truffle ravioli with fermented shiitake or melt-in-your-mouth quail suprème with almond hummus and artichoke hearts. Settle in for an afternoon or evening, either in the dining room with its charming frescoes or out on the terrace with its sweeping views.

Whether you dine under the 14th-century coffered ceilings, surrounded by exquisite paintings and Renaissance tapestries, or in the intimate garden under the walls of the Palais des Papes, the restaurant of the luxurious Hôtel de la Mirande transports you to another time. Chef Florent Pietravalle offers original haute-cuisine dishes with a focus on local products, perhaps wild cèpes with caviar and razor clams, line-caught dorade with roasted cucumber and a Granny Smith apple emulsion, or aged beef with Jerusalem artichokes and wild blackberries. Foodies, take note: Tuesday and Wednesday dinners are table d'hôtes, and one week every month the restaurant's cooking school, La Table Haute, invites guest chefs to teach casual, multilingual cooking classes for 6–12 people around a large table in a charming, authentic 19th-century kitchen, followed by a convivial feast—there are classes for children, too.

Chef Christophe Bacquié spent a dozen years at the renowned Hotel & Spa de Castellet, where he earned three Michelin stars, before he and his wife, Alexandra, set off on their own in 2022. Now Alexandra presides over their welcoming restaurant and chambres d'hôtes (guest rooms), set amid vineyards and lavender fields, and the chef is just as likely to serve your amuse-bouche as he is to whisk away your plate—and then ask you what you thought. You'll visit the cellar to choose your wine before feasting on a succession of sophisticated dishes made with ingredients like trout from the nearby Sorgue River, vegetables straight from the kitchen garden, or Alpilles lamb raised on garrigue herbs. Though the menu is prix-fixe only, the chef is happy to adapt dishes as needed.

This spot has seen its share of famous diners, from French movie stars to politicians, but you'd never know it from the friendly, laid-back atmosphere cultivated by the longtime chef and his loyal staff who loudly greet their friends—meaning everyone. From the apéritif until the bill comes (which could be a while, as you'll want to take your time here), you're drawn into the rhythm of Provençal bistro dining, with a bottle of the house red wine ready at your table and a stellar cheese platter all to yourself. There is a set menu for lunch and dinner—a choice of two starters, one or two main courses, and six desserts—ensuring that every morsel is fresh, local, and cooked to perfection. The bistro is about 6 km (4 miles) from Les-Baux-de-Provence and 13 km (8 miles) from St-Rémy-de-Provence.

If you're willing to travel 10 minutes to the tiny perched village of Goult, you'll be rewarded with a top-notch, thoroughly French meal at a restaurant that's elegant enough for a celebratory dinner, yet casual enough for a gourmet lunch on the go. Sea-crab soup with fricassee of cuttlefish and homemade aïoli makes a nice prelude to saddle of rabbit with local chanterelle mushrooms stewed with kale (a rarity in France). Top off your meal with a homemade sorbet, pear poached in black current and stuffed with rice pudding, or assorted regional goat cheeses and a local rosé. In summer, try for a seat on the small outdoor terrace overlooking the town square and church.

Tucked away under a canopy of green, this cozy local favorite serves contemporary French fare far above the usual offerings. Relax in a vintage armchair while enjoying appetizers like creamy burrata cheese with perfectly ripe heirloom tomatoes or grilled sardines with arugula and olives and entrées such as succulent guinea fowl or steak smothered in fresh morels with a side of golden frites. Seafood also factors large on the menu, and there are plenty of vegetarian choices, too. The top-notch wine list emphasizes natural, small-producer options.

If you're headed from Aix to the Vaucluse or any point north of the city, do what the local gourmands do and get thee to this gastronomic restaurant 23 km (14 miles) northwest of Aix on France's famous Nationale 7 (D7). A veteran of top kitchens from London to Switzerland, chef Nicolas Bottero struck out on his own in 2017, creating cuisine of utmost refinement but without a trace of fussiness and following the seasons and the local producers. In fall and winter expect squash, wild game, and local mushrooms, and, in summer, all the bounty of Provence. This is the perfect spot for a long lunch, but whether you're coming for lunch or dinner, allow plenty of time to savor a stellar meal.

Most recently the chef at Alain Ducasse's Monaco palace, the thirtysomething chef at the helm of this cozy wine bar is passionate about tracking down the best local ingredients, whether it's the juicy tomatoes with your roasted octopus salad or the Camargue rice with your succulent lamb. And he's no less scrupulous about wines, with a penchant for small natural and biodynamic producers from every region of France. It's a good idea to order several of the delicious, well-priced small dishes to taste as many as possible, but the fixed-price menus assure a great price-to-quality ratio. Be sure to reserve ahead, as the restaurant has only 20 spots and is an absolute favorite with locals.

This is the kind of place that young cooks dream of working in to learn the ropes, and Féval, quite young himself, has trained many a Michelin-acclaimed chef. After earning his fame in Paris, Féval opened this casual-elegant dining room, tucked away on a typically picturesque Aix side street, with a menu of dishes so masterful and flavorful that the restaurant soon became a local benchmark. Olivia Féval charmingly presides over the dining room to ensure that every moment is impeccable.

This luminous, casual dining room is an absolute must on any foodie circuit of Provence. Michelin-starred chef Mathieu Desmaret's thoughtful approach to seasonal Provençal products and wild ingredients and exquisite attention to unusual flavor pairings make for a revelatory experience far beyond the usual gourmet cuisine. Beautifully presented dishes both delight and surprise—such as a luscious emerald-green velouté of wild-dandelion paired with chèvre and flowers or perfectly roasted Ventoux black pork with tender asparagus and mussels. Lunch features three- or six-course menus; dinner sees six- or eight-course menus.

Named for its illustrious chef and pastry chef, the restaurant of the L'Auberge de Saint-Remy hotel draws foodies from near and far. Inventive, earthy, and refined, Rey's cuisine doesn't so much redefine Provençal cooking as expand it. With a laser focus on local, sustainable ingredients, she eschews all animal fats, salt, and other staples of French gastronomy in favor of rich, slow-cooked fish and vegetable broths steeped with herbs and seaweeds, olive oil, peppers, and edible leaves and flowers to complement fish and meat. Rey first gained notoriety as second runner-up in France's Top Chef 2011 and then shattered the culinary glass ceiling in 2017 with her first Michelin star. Her dishes are small works of art that leave diners satisfied without a hint of heaviness, even after 10 courses. Wahid, Rey's husband and the winner of France's Pastry Chef of the Year 2005, creates the desserts—small wonders as beautiful and complex as they are delicious.

At this sleek little wine bar, an understated decor belies splendid cuisine that easily stands up to some of Aix's more pricy gastronomic tables, but with much less fuss. In keeping with the wine bar ethos, plates are small (all the better to pair with wines by the glass) but beautifully conceived and sometimes thrilling—think foie gras with apricot confit, sea bream and wild mushrooms, or zucchini flowers stuffed with ricotta and mint. Don't be shy to ask for advice on wine pairings; you'll be glad you did.

Set in a quiet, leafy courtyard a few steps from the Collection Lambert, this is a good place to enjoy fresh, unfussy, reasonably priced dishes paired with local wines and served by a friendly staff. The pretty dining room's bucolic frescoes set the tone for a cuisine based on whatever's fresh, and you can eat outside in nice weather.

The more elegant sister to Mathieu Desmaret's locavore mecca, Pollen, this dining room set in a 14th-century cloister attracts a chic, upscale crowd that fits right in with the stunning decor. You'll find all the flair and precision that put this talented chef on the foodie map, but with an Asian touch in dishes like candied beets with miso yogurt and kumquat or roasted pollack with lemongrass, ginger, and lacquered leeks. For a more casual meal of appetizers and wine, with many options available by the glass, head to the wine bar and grab a seat inside or out on the beautiful cobbled terrace; there's also a cocktail bar with a menu of creative libations.

We'd love to keep this friendly restaurant a secret, but the chefs craft dishes of such rare subtlety and sophistication (especially at this price range) and the wine list has such a dazzling array of affordable options by the bottle or the glass, that it seems wrong not to share among copains. Though à la carte is possible, opt for the excellent-value prix-fixe menus to try dishes like panfried octopus and soppressata ham, hay-smoked Aubrac steak with parsnip purée and anchovy condiment, or foie gras with trout caviar and passion fruit. For dessert, consider the caramelized puff pastry with fig compote and vanilla cream. Note, too, that the chefs here are happy to accommodate special requests, making this a great place for finicky eaters or those with allergies.

For fresh seafood dishes and delicious pizzas grilled on an open fire, head over to this marine-themed restaurant set on a vast terrace across from Marseille's new Les Grandes Halles du Vieux Port market. The menu features a variety of scintillating pizzas, as well as heaping plates of crustaceans on ice, mussels in a spicy saffron sauce served with hand-cut fries, and whole roasted fish.

If you have a car and feel like a long, leisurely lunch or dinner in the countryside, this leafy spot 7 km (4 miles) from Aix is a good choice. On nice days, you can sip the local wines under tall plane trees and take in the bucolic views before enjoying fresh local specialties prepared with care and precision. On cooler days, having a meal in the pretty dining room or atrium is almost as pleasant as dining en plein air. Afterward, you're welcome to try your hand at pétanque court over a digestif. If the local wines have proven too tempting, you can stay at the on-site Gaogaïa Hotel.