Chez Davia – Nice's Niçoise table, three generations on

On rue Grimaldi, in Nice's Carré d'Or, Chez Davia has kept the taste of old Nice alive since 1953, when Davia, an Italian immigrant, opened what began as a refined tea room a few streets back from the station. Ceux que défendait dès 1953 sa grand-mère Davia qui fit des débuts de ce lieu un salon de thé raffiné. Her daughter Alda ran the kitchen next, before passing the flambeau to her own son in 2016. Pierre Altobelli trained in Paris, with the Frères Pourcel, who opened for him the doors of Asia, then in starred houses in Monaco (Ducasse) and Tokyo (Troisgros), before earning his own macaron in the famous red guide in Osaka. Chez Davia holds a Bib Gourmand in the MICHELIN Guide, and in 2024 the Staub Lebey guide awarded Chez Davia its prize for best regional bistro. The daube niçoise, the barbajuans and the tarte au citron have never left the menu; everything else turns with the season.

01The room and the setting

Little here looks rushed to modernise. A Murano glass chandelier hangs over rooms where terrazzo tile floors and gingham tablecloths set the scene, and red gingham cloths sit alongside vintage furniture and mismatched light fittings. The address itself sits in the Carré d'Or, between Nice's main train station and the Promenade des Anglais, close to the Jean Médecin metro stop. A small terrace extends the dining room outdoors when the weather allows.

02The chef

Pierre Altobelli is the third generation of his family to head the restaurant, which is named after its founder, his Italian grandmother. When he took over, he needed time to win round the neighbourhood's loyal regulars: it took a while to take the homemade cordon bleu off the menu and change the habits of a faithful local clientele. His own dishes now draw on everything he absorbed on the way home, from Pourcel's Paris kitchens to the Mediterranean kitchens of Monaco, Tokyo and Osaka. In November 2024, Chez Davia received the Prix Staub Lebey for best bistro of the year in the regions, in partnership with Champagne Palmer & Co, and the house also carries the Cuisine Nissarde label, a mark of quality and respect for local custom.

Insider tip

Closed Mondays; book via the restaurant's own site; small terrace available.

03The cooking

The repertoire stays close to the Niçois canon. Fresh Mediterranean anchovies are a model of simplicity; the ratatouille from the County of Nice and the generous barbajuans topped with pistou are remarkable, while squid caught off the coast of Liguria, fried to perfection, arrive with a welcome squeeze of lemon. A pistou soup, enhanced with guanciale and pecorino, is a particular delight, and a Swiss chard tart, a true sweet emblem of Nice, wins people over with its balance and lightness. The classic daube niçoise sometimes arrives with an unexpected note: a touch of grapefruit worked into the beef stew. Among the mains, farcis niçois are filled with lamb shoulder and sweetbreads.

04What to order

The card still carries the dishes the house became known for: sardines farcies au vert de blette, ravioli de daube à la bourrache, and tarte au citron. Pasta shows the kitchen's Ligurian half: linguine au pistou, al dente, with a good parmesan cream, altogether melting. Vegetables stuffed with lamb are, by the chef's own account, among the dishes regulars will not let him remove from the menu. Finish, as the house has for seventy years, with the tarte au citron.

05Wine and drinks

The cellar favours the south over anything flashy. The wine list, while not spectacular, offers delightful discoveries, particularly among the Corsican wines that pair beautifully with this Mediterranean cuisine. Closer to home, bottles from estates such as Clos Saint Vincent, Barbossi or Saint Jean sit alongside wines from further inland and from across the Italian border.

06When to go and booking

Chez Davia is closed on Mondays; on Tuesdays it opens for dinner only, from 19:00 to 21:30, and from Wednesday to Sunday it serves lunch from 12:00 to 13:30 and dinner from 19:00 to 21:30, according to the restaurant's own site in October 2026. The MICHELIN Guide lists it as a moderate spend. Tables can be booked directly through the restaurant's website, and the dining room is wheelchair accessible.

For a weekend. For a lifetime.