Feasts and festivities

Christmas first, then New Year’s, two dates that palatial hotels on the Côte d'Azur inscribe in gold letters on their agendas. Addresses of timeless elegance, where champagne bubbles sparkle more than elsewhere and post-party brunches prolong the festivities.

All chefs agree, the recipe remains unchanged. For a successful Christmas or New Year’s Eve dinner, ad-hoc staging is required, an atmosphere on a par with the event and a very special menu. As for decoration, each address competes with the next in imagination. With Alain Ducasse, the restaurant is transformed under the expert hands of professionals from the Monaco-based florist, Histoire d’Ours. To ensure a surprise, nothing has filtered through about the theme for 2009. SBM institutions will play the card of tradition and Be Green (ie. respect the environment). So, charming follies, but always in due consideration of Mother Nature. At the Métropole, artistic director Maud Lesur will propose “A Christmas Ballet”, a way of worthily participating in the centenary of the Russian Ballets. On the programme : white and gold, glowing and contemporary. At the Martinez Hotel in Cannes, and the Belles Rives in Juan-les-Pins, make way for disco with, for the first, “Disco Attitude” directed by Bee Gees Magic, and for the second a “Disco Fever”, worthy of the heyday of Travolta, Olivia Newton John et al. The ambiance follows on naturally : velvety and intimate or downright festive, especially on the night when we pass from one year to the next. On the menus ? The very best ingredients take the place of honour, sublimated by chefs anxious to enhance them and amaze the taste-buds of their guests. The inevitable “foie gras”, caviar, Saint-Jacques scallops, lobster, truffles, venison... To accompany them, champagne flows freely and guests are usually invited to sport evening dress. On the days following these celebrations, everyone wants the fun to continue. Why not opt for a brunch, a great idea invented by our friends from across the Channel, intelligently combining breakfast and late lunch. You turn up at the end of the morning, and while champagne is still an essential factor, it is served with refined but light dishes : salmon tartare, grilled vegetables, fruit and homemade tarts. Tasty and trendy, brunch is the perfect and stylish finale for year-end festivities. With a touch of nostalgia, as well…

Carnet

A Christmas tree, of course, but “gourmet and design”, as proposed by the Palme d’Or restaurant at the Hôtel Martinez in Cannes.

Opting for an intimate and elegant ambiance, the Hôtel Intercontinental Cannes Carlton.

Shades of gold, delicately illuminated by candles… The festive spirit conveyed by a “Christmas Ballet” designed by Maud Lesur, artistic director at the Métropole in Monaco.

Carlton Restaurant, Hôtel Intercontinental Cannes Carlton, 58 La Croisette, Cannes (0 800 910 850). Christmas Eve dinner : 130 €. Christmas Day Brunch : 105 €. New Year's Eve: 410 €. New Year's Day Brunch : 105 €. Hôtel Gray d’Albion, 38 rue des Serbes, Cannes (04 92 99 79 79). New Year's Eve Menu : 135 €. New Year's Day Brunch : 75 €. Hôtel Hermitage, Salle Belle Epoque, Square Beaumarchais, Monaco (00 377 98 06 40 00). New Year's dinner : 350 €. Hôtel Martinez, La Palme d’Or, 73 La Croisette, Cannes (04 92 98 73 00). Christmas Eve dinner : 165 €. New Year's dinner : 320 €. New Year's Eve evening Salon Royal Galuchat : 480 €. Hôtel de Paris, Salle Empire, place du Casino, Monaco (00 377 98 06 30 00). New Year's dinner : 720 €. Boscolo Hôtel Plaza, 12 av. de Verdun, Nice (04 93 16 75 75). New Year's Eve Menu : 220 €. La Passagère, Hôtel Belles Rives, 33 bd Baudoin, Juan-les-Pins (04 93 61 02 79). 195 €. Le Blue Bay, Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort, 26 av. Princesse Grace, Monaco (00 377 98 06 02 00). Christmas and New Year's Day Brunch : 125 €. Le Louis XV Alain Ducasse, Hôtel de Paris, place du Casino, Monaco (00 377 98 06 88 64). New Year's Eve Menu : 760 €. Fairmont Monte Carlo, L’Argentin, 12 av. des Spélugues, Monaco (00 377 93 50 65 00). Christmas Dinner : 99 €. L’Horizon, Christmas Day Brunch : 99 €. L’Argentin, New Year's dinner : 530 €. L’Horizon, New Year's Day Brunch: 99 €. Restaurant Joël Robuchon Monte-Carlo, Hôtel Métropole, 4 av. de la Madone, Monaco (00 377 93 15 15 35). Christmas Eve dinner : 230 €. New Year's dinner : 625 €. Sporting Monte-Carlo, Salle des Etoiles, 26 av. Princesse Grace, Monaco (00 377 98 06 36 36). New Year's dinner : 590 €.

Par Cécile Olivéro