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Monte Carlo Hotel & Restaurant suggestions
Dining at the Louis XV

On my last visit to Monte Carlo, I had spent most of my first night there awake, partly watching people lose fairly large sums of money at the Casino, and partly reflecting on the fact that there are more Rolls Royce and Lambhorgini automobiles in this small principality than in all of the rest of Europe. Frankly, the whole thing had left me a bit depressed and because depression invariably makes me hungry, at seven in the morning I made my way to the "Cafe de Paris", which for many years has been one of the brasseries I most adore in the world.

With many dishes named after the queens, princesses and courtesans who have dined here since 1868, I adore both the brasserie style food and the recently renovated decor. The decor, which is somewhere in style between that of art-deco and the rococo, is as close a reminder of the atmosphere of a 1900s French brasserie that you will find anywhere, and the food, which is solid, traditional and filling is a delight. As in many brasseries, the waiters are gruff, not caring whether you are really rich or a genuine pauper and in all cases almost demanding that you earn their respect. I think I succeeded at least partly in this when, at this early hour I started off by ordering a dozen oysters, asking them to be brought to the table together with a mixed platter of clams, turtle meat, shrimps and sea urchins.

After I had finished these off, with half a bottle of crisply dry white Muscadet wine, my waiter came to see if I wanted a cof- fee. When I responded rather sharply that it was still far too early for coffee and that I wanted to continue with an order of cassoulet, he actually looked at me with admiration. The dish with which I was presented was lovely - a rich heavy stew that combined in the best ways an ample amount of white beans with equally generous portions of beans, sausages, lamb chops, goose legs, thick chunks of bacon, garlic and onion. Although many do not consider this ideal breakfast fare, it sat very well, especially with the dry red Cotes de Provence wine I ordered to accompany it.

It was only logical after such a meal to walk back to my hotel. One should understand that walking anywhere in all of Monaco is quite simple because the entire principality is, after all, only 1800 meters long and less than 900 meters wide at its widest point. My own route took me along the Rue des Beaux Arts, arguably the most prestigious shopping street in the world, one ideally suited to the super rich who live here and the even richer who come to visit. As I peered into the windows, I was highly tempted to buy a few of the things that appealed to me - an two hundred thousand franc platinum and diamond studded pocket watch at Bulgari, a sixteen thousand franc silk shirt at Yves St. Laurent, a late 18th century wine decanter that had once belonged to Thomas Jefferson for eighty thousand francs at Giannanria Boccelati, a twelve thousand franc weekend travelling case at Louis Vuiton, and quite a few of the other trinkets on sale at Jacques Fati, Celine, Adriani Riboldi, Lanvin and Cartier. Fortunately for me, the shops had not yet opened, so I parted with not a single franc of my money.

Many people consider the "Hotel de Paris" to be the most prestigious and beautiful hotel in the world. Built in 1864, the rich carpets, gold trimmed marble columns and rare woods in the lobby, and exquisite chandeliers announce that everything here has always been and will always be luxurious. The hotel of choice of European Kings and Emperors, Iranian Shahs, Indian Potentates, of such notables as Jacques Offenbach, Verdi, Jules Verne, Alex- adre Dumas, Ulysses S. Grant, and of many of the millionaires of the world who come to spend either the summer or winter months in Monte Carlo, has always been exclusive but it was not always as expensive as it is today. When it first opened, for example, a room and full board for two costs from fifteen to twenty-five francs a day. Today, rooms cost about FFr 3,000, and dinner at Alain Ducasse's exquisite Louis XV restaurant, which is located on the lobby floor of the hotel, can cost as much as FFr 1000 per person.

Personally, because I find the opulence of the hotel overwhelm- ing, my own preference is for the more intimate "Hermitage". When the Hotel de Paris was built, the Hermitage was a small inn, sur- rounded by olive and orange trees. It later became a restaurant. Only in 1900 did it become a grand hotel, the facade being inspir- ed by that of the facade of the Palace of the Prince of Monaco. Somewhere between neoclassical and the Belle Epoque in style (among its architects was Gustave Eifel, the designer of Paris' famed tower, who created the arched glasswork of the hotels enclosed Winter Garden), the hotel became and remains a major competitor to its older sister. What has always amused me is that the rooms at the Hermitage have always cost just a bit less than those at the "other hotel" ... something like the difference between a Bentley and a Rolls Royce, both of which are precisely the same car, but with a different hood ornament.

Whatever, this was a time to nap and not to reflect, for what- ever else I did, it was necessary to prepare myself for dinner that evening at the restaurant of Alain Ducasse. Ducasse, it must be made clear, is not merely a chef. He is one of the truly great chefs of Europe and at thirty-eight has attained the highest accolades any chef can hope for. His restaurant, the Louis XV, which is housed in the Hotel de Paris has three stars in the Michelin Guide and is considered by many of Europe's and America's most respected critics to be either the first or second best res- taurant in the world today. (One should also keep in mind that Ducasse's restaurant in Paris also has three stars, this making him the only "Six-Star Chef" in the world).

Ducasse's method and style are not as difficult to define as they are to imitate. Remarkable for their simplicty, his dishes reflect a fresh, vibrant, varied cuisine that straddles two nations - France and Italy, gleaning the best from each. My own meal with him later that evening included a single giant green ravioli on a bed of wilted arugala and baby violet artichokes; roasted halibut with baby artichokes that were served with parsley sauce; a pigeon that had been grilled over hot charcoals with a slab of foie gras; a veal chop served with braised spring vegetables, and a dessert of sauteed fruits served with a red berry sorbet. With each course we had a different wine, and because Ducasse is now enamored of the reds and whites of the Cotes de Provence, each was a wine from that region. To say that the meal had been excellent would not to it justice. It had been exquisite.

I had come to Monte Carlo primarily to dine, but it would have been inconceivable not to pay a second visit to the world's most famous casino. Whether it was the Casino or the Hotel de Paris that guaranteed Monte Carlo's fame is not known, but the two have existed comfortably side by side for nearly a century. As I left Ducasse's restaurant I acknowledged a long standing tradition of those who seek luck by stroking the knee of the bronze horse in the entrance of the hotel. Because I was a guest of the Casino Manager, I was invited into one of the private rooms, there to watch the truly rich at play. To tell the truth, I couldn't even dream of placing a bet in this exalted company where bets of a quarter of a million francs on a single turn of a card were not uncommon. Although one can wager as little as five francs in some of the public rooms, people invited to these very special rooms are those who can win or lose five or more million francs in a night without the least concern.

One of the reasons I so adore this casino its sense of quiet dignity. It may be the meticulous Belle Eopque architecture, its monumental crystal chandeliers, its finely sculpted mahogany woodwork, or the air of genuine wealth that comes and goes from here so casually, but nobody would ever think of raising their voice or behaving in any other vulgar manner. It may also have something to do with the fact that at least some of the slot ma- chines accept bets of 10,000 francs. As to my own luck, if the truth be told, I neither won nor lost a single franc. I did, how- ever profit enormously by receiving quite a few complementary glasses of 1985 Pommery et Greno champagne.

The next day, in preparation for a strenuous day of eating and drinking, I started off by fortifying myself in the breakfast room of the Hermitage by feasting casually but generously on spicy Lyon sausages, a fluffy omelet aux fines herbes, fresh croissants, brioches, exquisitely good orange marmelade and fresh pineapple.

I had decided to start the day with a visit to "L'Oenotheque", a wine store so exclusive that an acquaintance had told me that "unless money is something you have so much of that you cannot count that high, this is not a store at which to buy anything". Visits, however, are free and there is much to be admired in this store, for among the wines in their extensive cellars are all of the best vintages of Chateau d'Yquem from 1900 to 1988 (a modest bottle of the 1928 vintage will cost a mere FFr 22,000) and such exclusive wines as the 1928 wines from Chateau Moutin-Rothschild (FFr 16,000) and Chateau Margaux (FFr 11,500), and Imperiale sized bottles of 1981 Chateau Petrus (FFr 44,000). I was especially impressed to find several Jeroboams, 3 liter bottles, of 1961 Chateau Lafite. Unfortunately, at FFr 68,000 each, these were just a bit beyond my means.

Friends had invited me to lunch at "La Cou- pole". With its candlelit tables, light gold and perfectly ironed tablecloths and attractive place settings, La Couple is especially attractive, formal enough to be elegant yet relaxed enough to be comfortable.

Our dinner opened with an amuse bouche, a kind of taste tempter, based on the traditional Monaca barbajuan. Fried raviolis filled with a variety of vegetables, these can be found in every Monagesque home, in the simplest of cafes and in the most luxurious restaurants. What made this version unique was that it came with an extraordinarily well made pepper and herb sauce, a sauce that was an immediate giveaway that here was a chef to be taken quite seriously.

We followed this with a lobster and pea salad that had been sprinkled over with a vinaigrette sauce that was as noted for its delicacy as for its flavor; a flavor rich veal fricassee with wild mushrooms; and an exquisite dish of warm fresh goats' cheese that was served with a pate of black olives.

After lunch I excused myself from my friends and devoted several comfortable hours to exploring the old city, the prison (where it is said that the prisoners dine quite well), and the residential area and park surrounding the Prince's palace. As I strolled, I reflected on the fact that I had a dinner appointment. I wonder- ed how, after all of the sumptuous dining I had experienced in the last thirty six hours, it would be possible for me to work up an appetite for that evening meal.

I need not have worried. My dinner was scheduled to take place in the rooftop Grill of the Hotel de Paris, and as I again entered that sumptuous lobby and saw the statue of King Louis XIV, I re- memered the words of that famous king "that appetite comes with the eating". After starting off at a small table near the bar with champagne and barbajuans, we made our way to our table, there to admire the exquisite view of the town, a view so extensive that one can see the Italian coast some 20 kilometers away, while we perused the menu. The Grill is a large restaurant, one whose intentional airs of pretensiousness and pomposity make it extreme- ly popular with the beautiful people. I forgave that pomposity because the food we received was a delight in flavors and tex- tures. Filets of red mullet with a salad of fresh herbs in a vinaigrette sauce based on wine and shallots; penne pasta cooked in the style of an Italian risotto and served with a confit of aubergines; a main course of roasted carre d'agneau; and two souffles, one of strawberries and the other of Grand Marnier liqueur, went down with great pleasure and no effort whatever, all with two more of the good Cotes de Province wines that now seem to be the rage in all of Monte Carlo.

See also ...
Monte Carlo Hotel & Restaurant suggestions
Dining at the Louis XV

© Daniel Rogov