There are restaurants that happen to belong to hotels, and there are hotels whose history begins at the table. La Réserve de Beaulieu belongs firmly to the latter. Long before it became one of the Côte d’Azur’s grand addresses, the property was a restaurant. In 1880, Nice restaurateur Pierre Lottier opened La Réserve on the waterfront at Beaulieu-sur-Mer, naming it after the basin used to keep the local fishermen’s catch. Its reputation for seafood and fine cooking came first; the rooms followed in 1905, when the address developed into a luxury hotel attracting an international clientele.
Today, the Belle Époque landmark remains in the hands of the Delion family, who have managed La Réserve since 1997. Its old-world character has been carefully preserved, but the reason to visit is not simply nostalgia. At Restaurant des Rois, Chef Julien Roucheteau has given its gastronomic heritage a distinctly contemporary voice.
Roucheteau arrived at La Réserve in 2019 after more than two decades in some of Paris’s most demanding kitchens. His career began at the George V with Philippe Legendre before taking him to the Lancaster, where he worked alongside Michel Troisgros and eventually took charge of the restaurant. He later earned two Michelin stars at La Scène Thélème and received the prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France distinction in 2019.
At Beaulieu, his cooking feels inseparable from the landscape. Through the restaurant’s vast windows and from its sea-facing terrace, the Mediterranean occupies the horizon. On the plate, it appears through local fish, Riviera vegetables, citrus, herbs and ingredients sourced from fishermen, farmers and producers Roucheteau knows and values.
The technique is precise, but the combinations are rarely conventional. Local anchovies are lightly charred and paired with romaine and hyssop. Mediterranean red tuna meets roasted tzatziki and sharp, fresh cucurbits. Red mullet is torched and served with a consommé made from its bones and infused with olive stones — an intensely Mediterranean idea built around using the product in its entirety.
Elsewhere, Niçoise ravioli arrive with tagetes, layers of cucurbits and caviar sauce. Grilled amberjack is paired with fennel, pink peppercorns, lime and peanuts, while blue lobster tail is steamed with lemongrass and accompanied by kiwi and beetroot. One of the more unexpected combinations brings together saddle of rabbit and San Remo gamberoni, finished with carrot purée enriched with shellfish oil.
Sauces, vinegars, grilling and acidity are central to Roucheteau’s cooking. Rather than overwhelming the principal ingredient, they sharpen it. The result is cuisine with a clear Riviera identity but enough freedom to move beyond the familiar vocabulary of Provençal fine dining.
Guests can approach the restaurant à la carte or through its tasting menus. Mediterranean Stroll stays closest to the coast, travelling through anchovy, red mullet and the chef’s interplay between sea and southern produce. French Escape looks more broadly across France, while Follow Me gives Roucheteau greater freedom to present his signature ingredients and current inspirations.
Dessert maintains the same character. La Réserve’s soufflé is perfumed with Beaulieu tangerine and Grand Marnier; strawberries are served fresh and frozen with a marmalade sharpened by bell pepper; cocoa is layered with tarragon, black cardamom and malt.
The grand dining room, terrasse, sea and polished service could easily have encouraged a restaurant rooted in ceremony. Instead, Roucheteau has made Restaurant des Rois feel very much of the present. Its history may stretch back to 1880, but what arrives on the plate is personal, modern and unmistakably connected to this particular stretch of the Mediterranean.
Address: 5 Bd du Général Leclerc, 06310 Beaulieu-sur-Mer
Phone: 04 93 01 00 01