Every other restaurant on the Riviera calls itself an institution, so you’d be forgiven for tuning out when Les Tamaris makes the same claim. But Raymond Viale has been here on Saint-Clair beach since 1963, cooking bouillabaisse – the south’s great fish stew, whole fish simmered in saffron broth – over a wood fire with the catch from his own boats. And at 81, he still won’t let a plate leave without his say-so. 

Elsa Bonacorsi’s father, Jo, started cooking on this naturist beach in 1975, and his daughter hasn’t messed with the formula. She still prepares the langoustes in a wood-fired oven, cooks the bouillabaisse outdoors in big cauldrons, and customers eat elbow to elbow (clothes on!) on a wooden deck over the water. Getting a table takes persistence: Elsa’s phone rings all summer, and she doesn’t always pick up. Arrive by boat if possible. 

The trick to surviving the Riviera is knowing when to retreat to the hills. After 18 months of renovation, Jules Brenier’s Le Mirage added stone villas among the cork oaks above Bormes-les-Mimosas, all with terraces looking out to the Îles d’Or and the Bay of Le Lavandou. After dark, chef Anthony Denon opens thirty covers at Monsieur Yuzu, where local fish takes on Japanese depth and the mixologist pours fat-washed whisky with seared Kobe beef. 

The restaurants around Bormes’ harbour bet on safe seafood and set menus, so finding Cyril Aveline’s place is a win. Most of the Mediterranean-inspired menu changes weekly, with food often cooked over embers, though dishes might also include a vegetable pâté en croûte with leek jelly or an almond gazpacho. His wife, Sakina, a trained sommelier, is in charge of the wine and won’t let anyone leave without trying something new.