Louis XV

Reputed to be the Riviera's best restaurant, Ducasse's legendary Louis XV is the height of sophisticated dining. Set jewel-like inside the opulent Hôtel de Paris, the dining room, which looks as though it's been teleported from 17th-century Versailles, sparkles with gold. Nice-born head chef Franck Cerutti uses seasonal ingredients in his themed French menus, with dashes of Italy, Bavaria, Scotland and the Far East to keep things peppy.

The restaurant contains the world's largest wine cellar: 250,000 bottles of wine (many priceless) stashed in a rock cave. Reservations are essential, as are jacket and tie for men.