La Colombe D'Or - Saint-Paul-de-Vence

I went to the Colombe d'Or to celebrate my friend birthday. I went there before and I was so impressed by this place that I needed to come back to share the experience with my best friend Gianni! This is an unique place which has been opened for more than 100 years. Picasso, Matisse, Braque and all the famous artists from the beginning of last century where coming here to eat and used to pay their bills with their pieces of art in exchange.... Now la Colombe d'Or has become like a private museum where you can come to eat and stay overnight because they have also few bedrooms. The open air terrace is full of plants and candle lights and you can eat sitting outside, the atmosphere is fantastic and the crowd that evening was a mixtures of locals, old and young and I also spotted 2 famous French movie stars ! The restaurant is at the entrance of St Paul the Vence and it looks almost unreal surrounded by sculptures and paintings of so many famous artists!The food was also very good which was a bonus because to be honest the place alone is magical. We sampled typical French cuisine with lots of fish courses and a very good rose' wine called the Whispering Angels The Grand Marnier soufflé was also to die for.....

I have always wanted to visit and the art did not disappoint. Sadly, however, the overall experience did. The terrace was crammed full and claustrophobic with no room between tables although that probably suited most of the customers who were clearly there to see and be seen rather than to enjoy the food and art.... boat owners and their bouncers. It reminded us of the experience we had at Nobu in Park Lane, full of the worst kind of tourists, over-rated and over-priced. Not an arty foodie haven as it had been when my parents used to visit in the 90's. The service was mixed..... one waiter in particular was extremely snotty. The food was good I suspect, but to be honest it was over-shadowed by the price and the ambience.

Having booked well in advance we arrived midweek for lunch. Having been here before we were so happy to be back and the terrace was packed. The food was not fussy but absolutely fantastic good cooking. The wine list extensive but we went for the house rose which was the best we had when in Provence and the cheapest which shows how other places are ripping you off.Can't wait to visit again and probably stay close rather than staying in Nice which was very noisy with the Nice Music Festival. I mean conversation stopping loud for a large area around the old town.I reckon the Colombe D'Or must be one of the best restaurants in the world , but that's my opinion.

If you love art you must go here. Old school hotel and restaurant with a great art collection. Food was very good although not sure about serving melon and Palma ham with a whole melon with the top sliced off! Expensive as you would imagine but a great atmosphere.

We wanted to dine at La Colombe D'Or so much, we made reservations months in advance since we heard such wonderful things. But when we got there the fumes from the kerosene lanterns were so overpowering we couldn't eat there. We had to leave. Don't get why they have to use kerosene instead of odorless oil for the lanterns or just plain candles. It was so overpowering it was nauseating. But the artwork was beautiful!