Thanks to the annual Film Festival, red carpets, celebrities and haute couture are the instant recalls when one thinks of Cannes, the little city on the French Riviera. This picturesque seaside town has been the favourite winter getaway for the British upper class, mostly because of its balmy Mediterranean climate - the area sees about 300 days of sunshine every year. The city is also a big player in the luxury market and is home to every high end brand you can name and a few that we in India have never heard of before.
Occupying prime real estate on the Croisette, the famous boulevard along the French Riviera, is Hotel Martinez. The hotel’s sign is a familiar sight on the Cannes skyline. Named after its founder and subsequently being known for more than eight decades as Hotel Martinez, earlier this year management of the property changed hands and it is now the Grand Hyatt Cannes Hotel Martinez.
Obviously, given its history and location, the hotel has hosted kings, princes, heads of states and super stars from the tinsel world. The property has undergone a transformation in the hands of the new management, but still retains its beautiful old-world charm.
All around town, you can’t escape the city’s connection to glamour and the silver screen. So, when I find that the hotel’s famous restaurant is named after the most revered movie award, I do wonder if it is overkill. But, whether it’s the super exclusive Geneva-based L. Raphael beauty spa on the 7th floor, the penthouse suite that’s the fourth most expensive in the world or Cannes’ only two Michelin-starred restaurant – La Palme d’Or – everything about Hotel Martinez fits the uber-luxurious bill.
After soaking in the romantic atmosphere outside the property and along the promenade, I stepped into the hotel to taste the fare at Cannes’ only two-star Michelin restaurant. I settle in to my chair at La Palme d’Or restaurant at the Grand Hyatt Cannes Hotel Martinez (quite a mouthful, even my hostess admits) – and the waiter pulls out a little sideboard from under my seat. ‘Et voila’, a perfect little resting place for my bag and phone. Ingenious, I think to myself. And when my hostess adds that I am sitting at a table where Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie enjoyed a meal one night – I can’t help but sigh – this is probably the closest I’ll get to Hollywood!
The restaurant is located on the first floor and faces the beach, giving its customers a beautiful view of the Croisette, and the deep blue waters that give the coast its title of Cote d’Azur. If you’re dining here, I suggest you take a good look and admire the view to your heart’s content before the food arrives; because once it does you’re going to be very distracted.
With two waiters and a sommelier looking out, my every whim is catered to before I even realise it, and as I sit back and relax, sipping on some champagne, for a moment, I can almost believe I’m a movie star.
Some champagne and an amuse bouche later, I am all set to begin my meal, which consists of items pre-selected by Chef Christian Sinicropi from the restaurant’s a la carte menu designed specially for Spring. The entrée, unusually named ‘Recontre avec Jean Camos’, is a baked spider crab with jus, made ‘in the spirit of dessert’ – which I am later told meant that the cooking technique was based on the recipe for the classic crème caramel. The smooth and creamy consistency of crab meat was definitely reminiscent of the dessert, but that’s where the comparison ends. The sharp tangy jus poured over the delicately cooked fresh crab is definitely a great start to the meal. For the main course, I am served what the chef has named “Paturoide”, which is shoulder of lamb, preserved for 72 hours and roasted. The 72-hours were well worth it as the tender lamb simply fell off the bone, and the outer layer, browned to a crisp, combined well with the soft meat below to create an interesting texture. A side dish of cooked eggplant added to the variety of textures and flavours in each mouthful. Dessert was the hotel’s signature dish, named after the restaurant, made of Jivara chocolate and served decorated like a brick of gold with a side of Tonka bean ice cream. The restaurant is the brainchild of Chef Christian Sinicropi and his involvement in every single aspect – from selecting the local produce to the décor – are clearly visible. When I notice the unique dishes used, I am told that the chef and his wife recently learnt pottery and the dishes were handmade by his wife, and some even feature lines from a book they like. Petit fours were served in a dish shaped like a carousel, with little ants painted along the centre – dessert does not get cuter than this! If God is in the details, then Chef Sinicropi is definitely high priest!
No visit to Cannes can be complete without a visit to the iconic Hotel Martinez and no matter how tempted you are to chill at the celebrity favourite beachside Z Plage, or the poolside La Relais, head to the Palme d’Or for a meal that will leave the gourmand in you sated.