The grills at the Château La Coste look out over 200 hectares of vineyard, a wine and spirits storehouse designed by Jean Nouvel, a giant spider sculpture by Louise Bourgeois that protects the art center (designed by Tadao Ando) and the attached restaurant, which has been run by top chef Hélène Darroze since summer 2021. This summer, lunch was served in the pavilion designed by architect André Fu, a windowed cube that’s hanging above water. It began with an incredibly delicate composition of butter beans, haricots verts and flat beans placed atop a purée of peach and lemon balm with balsamic vinaigrette and crunchy fresh almonds; before some small red mullet fillets, which were barely seared, to accompany the extra-thin sliced ratatouille stuffed into zucchini blossoms, a powerful rockfish jus, lemon paste and verbena aioli; and a fleshy apricot that was poached and peeled, a fermented milk and orange blossom sorbet, plus a crumble made with olive oil from the estate; and to round out the meal without overdoing it, a lovely roasted nectarine tartlet, and perhaps the best cannelé we’ve ever had. // D.S.
FEELING THIRSTY? Served by the glass, there’s wine from the estate, a Cuvée Les Pentes Douces in red and white (€15) or Les Perrières, a Corton from Méo Camuzet (for €98!) and, by the bottle, a Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape white (€600), or, if you’re in a less extravagant mood, a sublime rosé from the Château Simone, located nearby (€70).
PRICE: Lunch menus €65 (food and wine pairings €25) and €105 (food and wine pairings €65), dinner menus €105 and €135 (food and wine pairings €85 and €145).
