In the Principality of Monaco, where gastronomy is both ritual and spectacle, 2026 promises to be a defining year for Chef Marcel Ravin. With two Michelin stars at the Blue Bay Marcel Ravin and a newly earned star at Elsa, the Martinique-born chef enters the season with a full calendar of reopenings, international collaborations and a new philosophical tasting experience rooted in elemental balance.
A New Chapter for Elsa
On April 14, the restaurant Elsa at Monte-Carlo Beach will reopen under a new name: Elsa Marcel Ravin. Awarded one Michelin star in 2025, the restaurant now bears the chef’s name - a sign of personal investment in its culinary direction and identity.
This reopening forms part of a broader resurgence across Ravin’s establishments in Monaco, where his cuisine also appears in a more casual form at Mada One, located in the heart of One Monte-Carlo. The chef’s gastronomic signature thus spans from haute cuisine to what is described as “snackonomie,” underscoring a versatility that reflects both ambition and accessibility.
Blue Bay Marcel Ravin: A Season of Exception
At the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort, the two-Michelin-starred Blue Bay Marcel Ravin reopened on February 14 following its annual closure, marking the occasion with a special Valentine’s Day menu. The reopening signals the start of an ambitious program of exceptional dinners throughout the year.
On March 27, Ravin will host “Tradition moderne créole,” an evening priced at 250 euros per person, excluding beverages. The dinner pays tribute to his native Martinique, reinterpreting traditional Creole cuisine with a contemporary sensibility. The menu, inspired by Caribbean culinary heritage, draws on personal memories and emblematic dishes of the Antilles.
Spring will bring a four-hands dinner titled “Momentum” on April 13. Ravin will welcome Chef Arnaud Bignon, executive chef of the Michelin-starred Greek restaurant Spondi, for a collaborative menu offered in four or five courses. Organized on the occasion of the International Day of Gastronomy by Les Grandes Tables du Monde - of which Ravin is now a member - the event forms part of 18 simultaneous four-hands dinners across 13 countries, celebrating haute cuisine through exchange among chefs. Prices are set at 295 euros for a four-course menu and 350 euros for five courses, excluding beverages.
On May 23, the dinner “Terre de naissance” will close the spring season. Priced at 325 euros per person, including pairings, the menu will offer carefully constructed accords between dishes and Martinique AOC rums. Each rum, selected in collaboration with Martinique’s AOC rum producers, Ravin and his head sommelier, reflects an eco-responsible character. One unique AOC rum, owned exclusively by the chef, will be featured.
Earlier in May, on the 13th, Ravin will receive the three-Michelin-starred French chef Glenn Viel for a four-hands dinner as part of the Festival des Etoilés Monte-Carlo.
The autumn season will open on October 2 with a white truffle dinner, priced at 380 euros per person, excluding beverages, showcasing the delicacy through a specially designed tasting menu. On November 7, Champagne and caviar will take center stage in a dinner offered at 590 euros per person, beverages included.
“Le Rituel des Cinq Éléments”
Beyond headline events, Ravin introduces a new weekly concept beginning March 11: “Le Rituel des Cinq Éléments.” Offered every Wednesday from March 11 to April 29, and again from September 2 to October 28, 2026, the menu is priced at 180 euros per person, excluding beverages.
Inspired by the philosophy of Kaiseki, Japanese haute cuisine, the experience unfolds as a multi-course gastronomic journey structured around five elements - Water, Wood, Metal, Fire and Earth. Each week features a different menu composed of roughly ten small bites. The cuisine draws on Asian, Creole and Mediterranean influences, with each dish conceived to evoke a season, an element and an emotion.
“My cuisine is one of memory, travel and encounters,” Ravin explains. “With ‘Le Rituel des Cinq Éléments,’ I wanted to create a suspended moment, where gastronomy becomes a universal language. This menu does not seek to reproduce a tradition, but to respect its spirit: that of balance, time and meaning.”
For Chef Marcel Ravin, the 2026 season is less a series of isolated events than a sustained exploration - of memory, of terroir, of collaboration and of ritual. In Monaco, where refinement is a civic language, his kitchens promise a year defined by both rootedness and reach.
Photo credits: Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer