Hotel Du Clos

Eating

Breakfast (7.30am until late, extra cost) is usually served on the shaded garden terrace, but there’s a pretty dining room in case the weather breaks. You get strong coffee, English tea, freshly squeezed orange juice, a basket of baguettes, croissants, pains au raisin and pains au chocolate, perhaps a slice of lemon cake or a muffin. Seasonal jams include apple and pear, there’s marmalade, even fromage blanc. There are yoghurts too, and if you ask nicely, you can have an egg.

Lunch and dinner are served in the hotel's restaurant – a 3-minute stroll through the village. There’s a well-deserved Michelin star in its kitchen, but the prices are very reasonable (closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays). There’s a no-choice menu du marché, but if there’s something on the menu you don’t eat, an alternative is always at hand. You might get quail served with forest mushrooms, a fantastic piece of beef with new potatoes roasted in olive oil, a plate of delicious cheeses, then a fig tart with yoghurt ice cream. Ambiance, presentation and service are all immaculate.

If you want something simple, there’s a pizza restaurant in the village (open sporadically off season). The local villages of Valbonne, Biot, St Paul de Vence and La Colle-sur-Loup are all very pretty and offer lots of choice. You’ll find art galleries that double as restaurants, excellent pizza and simple bistros scattered around the village squares.

Finally, if you head down to the coast and want to treat yourself to a good lunch, try Keller Beach at La Garoupe on the Cap d’Antibes, the loveliest place to eat on the coast for miles.