In Nissa la bella, Armand Crespo (Bistrot d’Antoine, Comptoir du Marché, Peixes) sure has the winning touch. Take the day we went for lunch, when Bar des Oiseaux was filled to the brim with hungry customers… The pitch? A barock-and-roll bistro designed by Benoit Attal, where the blackboard menu of the day (six appetizers, six mains and six desserts) really packs a punch for just 20 bucks at lunch! After olives from Opio, some stunning casarecce pasta made its way out of the kitchen (delivered by the legendary pasta-making Barale house) served with sautéed calamari, garlic and parsley; then a revisited bourride combining swordfish, John Dory, mussels and calamari in a powerful ginger and chili broth. For dessert (a €7 add-on): a rich and very creamy tiramisu. At night, other treats with a cheekier bourgeois twist make eyes at you: beef shank ravioli in a citrus and mushroom broth; vol-au-vent with white asparagus, asparagus cream and country bacon, etc. // G.D.
FEELING THIRSTY? A very dry Paul Kubler Alsace, and a full-bodied Rhone Marselan from the Domaine Chaume-Arnaud served by the glass (€4), selected from a wine collection that’s as jubilatory as it is eclectic – Picpoul Félines Jourdan (€22 a bottle), a Provencal white from the Château Henri Bonnaud (€31), Cadurcien Tu Vin Plus Aux Soirées from Jouves (€31), etc.
PRICE: Set menu €20 (lunch), à la carte €31-44.
