Perched high on the mountain cliffs, Chateau Eza Restaurant offers breathtaking views of the Mediterranean Sea. Chateau Eza was built 400 years ago, and it used to be the winter retreat for the Swedish Prince William. Recently, after extensive renovations, Chateau Eza is now part of the upscale 5-star hotel and restaurant on the French Riviera.
Please note: Eze is the name of the village, and Chateau Eza is the hotel and restaurant.
Chateau Eza is on the mountain top of the medieval village of Eze, about 12 kilometers from Nice. The only way to get up here is by foot. If you drive, stop at the reception desk at the bottom of the village to have the car valet. If no one is present, there is a red phone that connects you directly to the restaurant. Since we took Uber, we found it easier to be dropped off in front of La Chevre D’or restaurant where the walkway to the restaurant is.
On the way up the hill, and turned around for this lookout.
The walk is about 300 meters up, along the narrow cobblestone streets and hot-pink bougainvillea. Beautiful courtyards and picturesque houses are in every corner. It was a very pleasant walk, even with a little bit of rainy and wet weather when we were there.
Chateau Eza Restaurant
We booked the restaurant well in advance. The reservation requires a credit card and will charge for no show. We came in a bit early; the host indicated that the restaurant wouldn’t open until 7:30 pm. Since it was still raining, we decided to sit in a lounge directly in front of the bar and adjacent to the dining room.
Chateau Eza Restaurant, Lounge
It is a lovely room with a fireplace looking out to the Mediterranean Sea and mountains. At this level above the sea, the weather frequently changes throughout the day. The fog comes and goes within a few minutes. As soon as the fog clears, you can walk out to the terraces to see the magnificent view with clarity.
At 7:30 pm, a host came out directing us to the dining room. Tables lined up along the indoor glass room with a panoramic view of the French Riviera and the roads at the bottom of the mountains.
On the restaurant’s website, it has the a la carte and degustation menus written in English but at the restaurant was only in French. Since we already decided to go with the dégustation menu, it doesn’t matter to us. Moreover, the waitress thoroughly described each dish in perfect English about the ingredients and the chef’s interpretation.
The first dish is amuse-bouche, bread was also provided before we started the menu.
The second dish is mullet filet bathed in vegetable broth. Mullet is a kind of fish native to the Mediterranean.
The third dish is fresh cod meat in mushroom cream and garnished with salt and smoked royale herbs.
The fourth dish is poached lobster on a bed of young spinach
The fifth dish is lychee slush with fresh ginger and rose petals. Its purpose is to clean our palate for the next dish.
The sixth dish is an upside-down pie with lamb shoulder confit, with olives and eggplant.
And finally, the desert is a fraisier cake with wild strawberry.
Oh wait, one more dessert, and petit four as usual in French fine dining.
The food was excellent, beautifully presented, and the ingredients were fresh and complemented well with the wine we chose.
The evening was fantastic. Well worth the expectation. The weather was not perfect, but nevertheless grandeur. Rain and fog were on and off, but we had windows between the changing weather to capture some magnificent pictures.
Our dinner lasted until 10:30 pm. If not for Uber we might have some challenges for transportation back to Nice, where we came back at night on this trip and visited surrounding cities during the day.
Map of the Village
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