A visit to La Petite Maison is a celebration of how food, drink, people and setting come together to create something unique. Every detail has been inspired by our cultural roots on the banks of the Mediterranean, and the spirit of a creative and vibrant era, La Belle Époque.
Exquisite harmony on the palate… and with your help, outrageous harmony in the room. Here’s what to expect…
The aim with every dish we serve at LPM is to create a mouthful of food that will not be forgotten – and which you cannot find or reproduce elsewhere. Behind that is a journey to explore the essential joy at the heart of the ingredients of the Riviera that we take as our inspiration. Starting, of course, on the Côte d'Azur and the Ligurian coastline, but extending around all the shores of the Mediterranean. The sun-soaked artichokes, lemons, olives, courgettes, tomatoes, peppers and girolles, the freshest seafood, meat and pasta: they lead everything.
For that reason, they spend long in our imagination, because this is all about finding new ways to express the cuisine of our spiritual home. They are sourced with painstaking attention to detail. They are prepared with techniques of extreme care and precision, à la minute, to protect their integrity. And they arrive at the table the moment they are ready. No waiting around, no sitting under lamps. No lamps. The result is a light, varied and healthy menu of delicate intensity, unique to us. Put the food in the middle and let the ingredients take you where they will...
Come to LPM and you’ll have access to great houses and wines of global repute, of course. But our aim is to take you, if we can, to somewhere you have not been, and somewhere you will not forget. For that reason, in all categories of wine we avoid the generic and look instead for the special, the unusual. In particular, we seek smaller vineyards and makers that have a story to tell, be that the story of the owners, the land, unique twists in the production, or in the qualities of the wine itself. LPM is a world leader in rosés, emblem of the French Riviera, perfect with our food. Delight and surprise, this is the work of an LPM sommelier.
From ‘levitation’… to a scented towel for your hands… to a touch of Chanel No5 in the air… to a smouldering herb – this is about full use of all the senses to defy expectations and create joy. There is humour here, surprise, creativity, history, theatre, and stories. All the same, our cocktails feel fresh and simple, made from high-quality ingredients that take, wherever possible, the Riviera as their inspiration. There are many unique cocktails here, but our most legendary is the Tomatini. So special that you can celebrate World Tomatini Day with us every year on November 12th.
Take a look at our specially devised Jean Cocteau menu here.
Step inside an LPM and you’ll find a pared-down backdrop reminiscent of the French Riviera: a light colour palette, white china, fine linens, marble. Onto that: brilliant, bold colours. Art from 20th Century painters from the South of France: provocative, bright, naive. Fresh flowers in outrageous vases, arrangements that are unstructured, untidy even. You’ll also find references and inspirations from ‘Belle Époque’ villas on the Côte d’Azur: mosaics, fer forgé, shutters. All LPMs carry hallmarks of classic French restaurants... 19th Century gilt and harlequin mirrors and a centrepiece bronze sculpture, for example.
Sun-dappled terraces, comfortable, easy chairs, bright bougainvilleas, craggy olive trees. Open prep counters. Classic welcome bars, typically marble or lava stone with pewter, or zinc. Music between modern and timeless, bossa novas, Mediterranean jazz. And so, with the help of our guests, we create an extraordinary energy between us. There’s nothing quite like it.
