Ramatuelle is one of those villages that does not announce itself.
You round a bend in the road south of Saint-Tropez, the pine forest presses close on both sides, and then suddenly there is the village on the hill: stone-built, medieval, crowned with a church tower, and entirely indifferent to the commotion on the beaches below. It is one of the most beautiful villages in all of Provence, and it happens to sit at the centre of one of the finest stretches of coastline in France.
The Pampelonne bay lies at its feet, lined with restaurants that range from the genuinely historic to the spectacularly fashionable, and the village itself conceals a handful of tables that are among the most quietly rewarding on the entire peninsula. Guests staying near the Saint-Tropez peninsula will find that Ramatuelle rewards patience and local knowledge in equal measure. The restaurants below represent the full range of what this corner of the Var has to offer: from a beach institution that was born from a film crew's appetite in 1955, to a secret cove where wood-fired bouillabaisse has been served since 1953, to a candlelit village terrace where a husband-and-wife team turn out honest Italian cooking night after night. Each one earns its place.
Club 55 | The original Pampelonne institution, born on a film set in 1955
There is no honest guide to eating on the Saint-Tropez peninsula that does not begin with Club 55. In the summer of 1955, the de Colmont family, who had built three simple wooden beach cottages at Pampelonne for their own use, found themselves cooking daily meals on a single gas stove for 80 members of the film crew of Roger Vadim's …And God Created Woman, starring Brigitte Bardot. Bardot and Vadim returned to the beach shack after filming wrapped, put the place on the map, and the de Colmonts formally registered their accidental restaurant as a business the following year. Seventy years later, Patrice de Colmont, son of the founders, still runs the club with the same unhurried convivialité that made it what it is.
The menu at Club 55 has never pretended to be anything other than what it is: well-sourced Mediterranean ingredients, simply prepared. The classic crudités basket that arrives at the table is an institution in its own right. Grilled fish, salads, and seasonal produce form the core of the offering, served under a pine-shaded pergola on white chairs with blue linen, feet in the sand if the mood takes you. A strolling band plays between the tables at lunch, adding to the particular atmosphere that no other beach club on the shore has managed to replicate. The owner's philosophy is perhaps the best summary of the place: the client is not the king, because here he is a friend. Reservations at Club 55 are made by phone and are handled personally by Patrice de Colmont, who still keeps a handwritten card for each booking. In July and August, tables are in demand up to two months ahead. Arrival by private boat is possible via the club's own pier and dinghy service.
Gigi Ramatuelle | Italian Dolce Vita in the pines above Pampelonne
Hidden among the aromatic pines that line the approach to Pampelonne, Gigi Ramatuelle occupies its own world. The concept, created by Gigi Rigolatto under the Paris Society umbrella, is one of those places that is genuinely difficult to categorise: part beach club, part Italian restaurant, part Bellini bar, part family retreat, part spectacle. There is a swimming pool with sunbeds, private Ischia and Ponza cabanas, a dedicated children's club called the Gigi Circus, a concept store, and a wellness area. The whole is conceived as a beach house in the Italian tradition, a place to arrive at midday and not leave until evening.
The restaurant sits within this setting under mimosa and pine trees, with the first lunch service accompanied by a live orchestra and the later afternoon seating given over to a DJ. The menu is emphatically Italian, built around the values of sharing and seasonal produce that define northern Italian cooking at its most generous: truffled arancini, king crab Caesar salad, vitello tonnato, linguine alle vongole, beef carpaccio, spiny lobster spaghetti, and a perfectly made margherita pizza. The Bellini bar offers the signature Il Bellini di Gigi alongside a full cocktail list and a selection of Italian aperitivi. Gigi Ramatuelle is open seasonally and draws a fashion-conscious crowd throughout the summer. Reservations are recommended. The estate is located at 1050 Chemin des Barraques, Ramatuelle.
Chez Camille | Wood-fired bouillabaisse in a secret cove since 1953
The cove of Bonne Terrasse, at the southernmost tip of the Pampelonne shore where the bay curves towards Cap Camarat, is one of those places that does not appear on the itineraries of first-time visitors. The local fishermen once sheltered their pointus here, the small traditional wooden boats that worked the gulf for centuries, and the cove retains that quality of sheltered remove even today. Chez Camille has occupied it since 1953, serving a cuisine rooted in the same Mediterranean traditions that the restaurant was founded on, generation after generation of the same family, in a setting that still carries the simple décor of its origins.
The bouillabaisse here is the reason most guests make the journey: a genuine wood-fired preparation, slow-cooked according to the ancestral recipe of the house, built on rascasse, Saint-Pierre, grondin, and chapon sourced directly from the waters of the Golfe de Saint-Tropez. Grilled lobster, local fish of the day, clams in spiced tomato, and squid fresh from the morning's catch complete a menu of real authority and absolute provenance. The Camille tasting menu is the most considered way to experience the full range of the kitchen. The restaurant operates Wednesday to Sunday for lunch and dinner, year-round. A boat shuttle is available. Valet parking is on site. Reservations are strongly recommended throughout the season.
La Forge | The village table | Chef Paolo & the Italian art of honest cooking
To understand why La Forge matters, it helps to arrive in Ramatuelle in the evening when the day-trippers have gone and the village has returned to itself. The stone streets narrow, the jasmine is in the air, and from the terrace of La Forge at 11 Rue Victor Léon, the view opens across the hills towards the distant sea. This is the Ramatuelle that the village has always been, and it is the setting that Paolo Amadori and his wife Francesca have chosen for their small, serious Italian restaurant: a Gault&Millau-recognised table with no pretension and considerable skill.
Chef Paolo Amadori trained in Italy before settling in Provence, and his cooking reflects both. Every pasta and every loaf of bread served at La Forge is made by hand in the kitchen. The menu changes with the seasons and with the produce available from local suppliers, but the signatures remain constant: pappardelle, tortelli with Sorrento herbs, tuffoli alla carbonara in the La Forge style, roasted octopus with potatoes and peppers, seafood risotto, squid stuffed with fish ragù, vitello tonnato, veal osso buco in gremolata, and a tomato and red mullet tartar that encapsulates the Franco-Italian sensibility of the kitchen at its most precise. Francesca runs the front of house with the warmth and discretion that allows the cooking to speak. Open daily from April to November for lunch and dinner; in July and August, dinner service only. In July and August, La Forge opens a sister concept, Cucina de La Forge, a few doors away at six Rue Victor Léon, offering a more informal and accessible version of the same Italian kitchen. Reservations are advised throughout the season.
Le Migon | Wild, authentic & open all year at the foot of Cap Camarat
At the far end of the Pampelonne shore, beneath the lighthouse of Cap Camarat and away from the crowds that gather on the more fashionable stretches of beach, Le Migon occupies a position of its own. The restaurant sits in the quartier Bonne Terrasse, in a setting that has changed little over the years: a rustic structure directly on the sand, a terrace where you eat with the sea in front of you, deckchairs for those who want to linger, and a simplicity of atmosphere that is increasingly rare on a coastline that has become synonymous with excess.
The cooking here spans the meeting point of Provençal and Italian traditions that has always defined this part of the Var. Grilled fish and meats are the backbone of the menu, alongside bouillabaisse, fresh seafood platters with fines de claire oysters, langoustines and clams, and pasta dishes prepared with the same attention to quality produce that the location seems to demand. The bill is honest by local standards, with à la carte running every day and the dish of the day is reportedly consistently good value. Le Migon is also one of the few beach restaurants in the area open year-round, making it an excellent option for guests visiting outside the high season. A boat shuttle service is available for those arriving from the water, and private parking is on site. Reservations are advised in summer, particularly for evening service.
What makes Ramatuelle remarkable as a destination for food is the range it offers within a very small geography. Within a twenty-minute drive you can move from a legendary beach institution to a secret cove where nothing has changed in seventy years, from an Italian beach club in the pines to a candlelit village terrace where one chef makes everything by hand. It is, in the best Provençal tradition, a place that rewards those who know where to look. Our team is happy to advise guests on reservations, seasonal opening hours, and the best table for any occasion, from a long family lunch on the beach to a quiet dinner for two in the village. Contact us to plan your time in Ramatuelle.
À bientôt,
