HOTEL MAJESTIC BARRIERE, CANNES, FRANCE
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Fine Dining
The Majestic's main dining room, Le Fouquet's Cannes, features fine French cuisine in a brasserie setting. Seating near the pool spills out onto the ground-floor terrace. At the hotel's private beach, the Restaurant de la Plage offers delectable Mediterranean cuisine and a full bar for those lounging in the sun.
Villa des Lys
photo ©Hotel Majestic |
The hotel's crown jewel is the intimate 50-seat La Villa des Lys. Its chef, Bruno Oger, was voted the chef of the year by Gault Millau in 2000 and his elegant restaurant has garnered one star from Michelin. I chose the $125 Prix Fix menu. I started with foie gras (home-made duck liver terrine) flavored with a sweet arabica coffee filling (not an obvious mixture, but oh so good). This course was followed by a puree of green beans cooked in butter, topped with Dubin Bay prawn tails and a seafood sauce; then braised lobster medallion served with mashed new potatoes and béarnaise sauce flavored with lobster roe. That lead up to the breaded rack of lamb with almonds, pistachio, hazelnut and served with Bruccio, ravioli and artichokes.
Are you still with me? For dessert, the chocolate custard Araguani made my sweet tooth throb with joy. Then came the most magnificent-looking course, a preserved orange, scooped out and filled with orange marmalade and an orange cream, with a side of rice pudding flavored with orange leaves. If you're a dessert freak, you'll think you've reached nirvana. As a finishing touch, the homemade madeleines and an iced chocolate confection (cross between a rich milkshake and iced mousse) bring on such guilt. But I ate them anyway, for all those who couldn't be there to dine on some of the best food I've ever had. I ate it all for humanity!
Jealous? Don't be. The Majestic also offers a cooking class, taught by Chef Bruno Oger. Guests get to tag along with him as he goes to the Forville market to buy fresh produce from France's Provence region, arguably some of the best in the world. Back in the kitchen Oger and his staff teach participants two entrées and two dessert recipes. Guests don't watch, they make. And then they're sent home with recipes written in English using U.S. standard measurements. Call it a golden opportunity to bring home a bit of the Majestic.
After Hours
The Majestic Barrière Shines at Night
photo ©Hotel Majestic |
Like Ocean Drive in Miami or Avenue Atlantica in Rio de Janeiro, the Croisette is a stroller's paradise in the evening. Take a seat at any sidewalk café and you'll get an unforgettable show -- chic Europeans, movie stars, supermodels, scantily clad women, the young turks who hunt them and tourists parade up and down the street. Ice cream and sorbet stands provide refreshment.
The Casino Barrière de Cannes Croisette, next door to the Palais, is perfect for those who like games of chance. Jane's and Jimmy'z Night Club are great places to top off the evening with a cigar, a drink and conversation.
When to Go
If you go to Cannes in May, during the Cannes Film Festival when the weather is in the idyllic mid-70s, you'll need to book months in advance (expect to leave a full deposit for your entire stay and note that prices are higher than the rest of the year). 
photo ©Hotel Majestic |
Late July and August are peak season for French travelers in Cannes, temperatures are in the 90s and the beaches are lined with sun starved bodies. It's 80 degrees and rooms are more abundant in September and October. Between November and February the temperature drops to 50 degrees and Cannes is peaceful.
The ideal location, sheer elegance, superb service, fun day trips, fine dining and plush lodgings make the Cannes Majestic Barrière the crown jewel of accommodations in Cannes. It's a classy, lively place to stay during the Cannes Film Festival and a quieter regal hotel the rest of the year. Go!
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BOOK THE MAJESTIC!
USEFUL LINKS
France Tourism
Airport (Nice) Shuttle Service
Cannes Tourism
Côte d'Azur Lodging from Sleeping Around
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