La Table de Julien – the bistro that keeps a Belle Époque palace on its toes

On the seafront boulevard of Beaulieu-sur-Mer, between Nice and Monaco, La Table de Julien is the bistro table of La Réserve de Beaulieu, the pink Belle Époque hotel whose story began in 1880, when visionary restaurateur Pierre Lottier established a refined coastal retreat on the shores of Beaulieu-sur-Mer. Where the hotel's grand dining room, Le Restaurant des Rois, carries one MICHELIN Star, La Table de Julien is its looser, warmer sibling: a Bistro created by La Réserve de Beaulieu under the direction of chef Julien Roucheteau, "Meilleur Ouvrier de France 2019", built as a "chic bistro" with a real bistro counter that goes perfectly with the light colours of the place, opening onto a beautiful terrace in the shade of the olive trees. It is Selected in the MICHELIN Guide, and thanks to its authenticity and the freshness of its cuisine, the Table de la Réserve has been awarded an "Assiette" by the Michelin Guide.

01The room and the setting

Around the central bar and open kitchen, the brigade orchestrates a seamless, understated ballet, where every gesture becomes a promise of excellence and every plate a work of art. Outside, the pergola beckons guests into a timeless retreat, wrapped in warmth and intimacy — the refined spirit of the great bistros at their most exceptional. The room sits inside the same estate where each evening, a pianist settles in at the baby grand for guests of the Gordon Bennett Bar next door, though La Table de Julien keeps its own tempo — brighter, faster, closer to the pass. Light colours, the zinc-topped counter and the olive trees outside set a tone closer to a Riviera brasserie than to a palace dining room, even though both share the same address on boulevard du Maréchal-Leclerc.

02The chef

Julien Roucheteau runs every kitchen at La Réserve de Beaulieu. He holds the title of "Meilleur Ouvrier de France 2019", the collar reserved for France's most rigorously examined craftsmen, and splits his attention between this bistro and Le Restaurant des Rois, where the culinary art of starred chef Julien Roucheteau is celebrated in a sumptuous setting one floor up. At La Table de Julien he works alongside Chef Exécutif Edi Guillore, who signs the seasonal plats, and pastry chef Benoît Jabouille, who composes the dessert list — each name printed beside the dishes it created, as read on the restaurant's own menu in October 2026.

Insider tip

Open daily year-round; the lunch menu changes weekly, bouillabaisse served Fridays and Saturdays.

03The cooking

Each creation pays tribute to the finest produce, handled with precision and purpose — a dialogue between contemporary boldness and Mediterranean heritage. The repertoire follows the week rather than only the season: a standing set of dishes labelled Countea de Nissa — Niçois county cooking — rotates by day, so a guest who returns on a Tuesday instead of a Thursday finds an entirely different plat at the same table. Stuffed sardines, beef daube with home-made gnocchis, braised lamb shoulder and a two-service bouillabaisse take their turn through the week, a structure read directly on the bistro's own menu in October 2026, alongside a shorter, more exploratory à la carte of crudos, confits and lacquered meats.

04What to order

The à la carte, read on the restaurant's own menu in October 2026, opens with a feuille-à-feuille of Chinese cabbage and figs with an almond-watercress condiment (16 €), an organic egg set on a hazelnut squash sauce with aged Comté emulsion (17 €), blue-torched mackerel with mirabelle plum and almond (18 €), and a skipjack tuna crudo scented with preserved rhubarb and chanterelle pickles (19 €). Among the mains, Cian trout confit with glazed celeriac and celery velouté (29 €) sits beside octopus tentacles with pepper and paprika (30 €), a house-made farmhouse poultry-and-lobster sausage with acidulous rhubarb and grilled corn (32 €), and a stuffed rabbit leg with confit lemon, sage, quince and Jerusalem artichoke (34 €). The Countea de Nissa board changes by the day: Niçoise-style stuffed sardines on Tuesdays (22 €), beef daube with home-made gnocchis on Wednesdays and Thursdays (29 €), and on Fridays and Saturdays a bouillabaisse 'de la Table', made with small-boat fish and served in two services (35 €). A four-course set menu built to the chef's inspiration runs at 52 €, and the dessert boutique, by pastry chef Benoît Jabouille, closes the meal at 8 €.

05When to go and booking

La Table de Julien welcomes you every day, Monday to Sunday 7/7, for lunch from 12:00 to 14:30 and for dinner from 19:00 to 21:30. Unlike the hotel's more seasonal rooms, it stays open through the year, including weeks when the rest of La Réserve slows down. Lunch brings a weekly menu découverte — four courses for 28 €, changing from one week to the next — while the bouillabaisse and other Countea de Nissa specials are tied to specific days, so Friday and Saturday evenings are the ones to book for fish lovers.

For a weekend. For a lifetime.