Eating out · 7 min read
Where to eat around Saint-Florent and Patrimonio
Twelve tables I actually go to, from a sandwich on the harbour to the one you keep for special occasions. With what to order, and when to book.
Matthias Lavaux · Updated
I live here all year. What follows is not a list scraped from online reviews. These are the tables I go to, who I go with, and what I order. All are less than thirty minutes from the house, most under fifteen.
Five minutes away, in the vines
Libertalia is my first reflex when friends turn up. It is Jean-François Maestracci’s place: you eat vegetables from his garden, drink the Ribella he brews on site, and there is often music at night. Evenings only, June to September, and you need to book.
On the Patrimonio village square, across from the post office, Jean-Luc Santini pours his red and serves pizzas at the Hôtel du Vignoble. This is the real Corsican apéritif, no fuss. Early evening, it is perfect.
- Libertalia · Route de l'Église, 20253 Patrimonio5 min
- Hôtel du Vignoble · Village square, 20253 Patrimonio5 min
Saint-Florent, under ten minutes
La Table de La Roya is the one I keep for special occasions. César and Fanny cooked in some lovely hotels for years before setting their terrace right on the sand, facing the gulf. Mediterranean cooking, refined and bright. Open April to mid-October, booking essential.
For pizza, Toi & Moi makes the best Neapolitan around. Do not be put off by the petrol station next door: Neapolitan oven, dough made fresh daily, a family business across three generations. Takeaway preferably, and cash only.
On the harbour, la Gaffe is a smarter fish table, indoors or on the terrace facing the boats. And Ti Amo, on the quay, for a drink in front of the boats at the end of the day.
- La Table de La Roya · Plage de la Roya, 20217 Saint-Florent12 min
- Toi & Moi · 20217 Saint-Florent12 min
- Ti Amo · Quai du port de plaisance, 20217 Saint-Florent12 min
- Restaurant la Gaffe · 25 Marinaccio, 20217 Saint-Florent12 min
Twenty minutes away, on the Cap coast
Da Noi is the most beautiful table on the coast, to my mind. Clinging to the rock near the Nonza tower, the terrace drops over the bay all the way to Saint-Florent. Matteu front of house, Stefana in the kitchen, their own garden, fish from Centuri. Very few tables: booking is absolutely essential.
Livelier and simpler, La Sassa has its terrace above the black pebble beach, ideal with a group. And Bocca Fine, right in the heart of the village, has a shaded terrace and careful cooking.
- Da Noi · Poghjulellu, 20217 Nonza20 min
- La Sassa · Nonza, 2021720 min
- Bocca Fine · Village centre, Nonza, 2021720 min
The two worth the detour
Providenza, thirty minutes away, is the farm table of an artists’ residency between Pieve and Rapale. Wood-fired cooking, almost everything from the garden, and a menu that changes every week with the chefs in residence. Dinner facing the Conca d’Oro, around €49 for the tasting menu. By reservation, closed Mondays.
And if you drive the whole Cap, Le Vieux Moulin in Centuri has been a family institution since 1961, in an 1860 American’s house. Centuri is France’s leading langoustine fishing port, so order Mamie Josette’s langoustine pasta, on the terrace above the harbour. Reckon on an hour and a half of driving, and do not miss the citron mousse.
- La Cabane du Lotu · Coastal path, 20246 Santo-Pietro-di-Tendaby boat
- Providenza · A Cucina · Ghjuncheto, Pieve30 min
- Chez Morganti · Marine d'Albo, 20217 Ogliastro35 min
- Le Vieux Moulin · Centuri harbour, 202381h30
One tip that holds for every address here: in July and August, book the day before, not on the day. The good tables around the gulf are full, and so are the parking spaces in Saint-Florent. From Barbaggio, reckon on ten minutes of driving and allow another quarter of an hour to park.
The questions I get asked about this
Where can I eat in Saint-Florent in the evening without booking?
Out of season it is possible, but from June to September you need to book, even for the simple places. The two no-booking options that work: a takeaway pizza from Toi & Moi, or a drink and a sharing board at Ti Amo on the harbour.
What is the best restaurant near Patrimonio?
For a memorable dinner, Da Noi in Nonza, twenty minutes away, with the finest terrace on the coast. For a relaxed evening five minutes away, Libertalia in Patrimonio, with garden vegetables and beer brewed on site.
Can you eat late in northern Corsica?
Last orders are usually between 9pm and 9.30pm in season, earlier out of season. If you are arriving late, say so when you book. Most places will accommodate you.
Are there good restaurants open out of season?
Yes, but the list shrinks. Le Vieux Moulin in Centuri opens 15 February to 1 November, La Table de La Roya April to mid-October. In the Nebbio, call before you drive out between November and March.
Can we cook at the house instead of going out?
That is rather the point. The Baraccò Argia kitchen has two ovens including a steam oven, a whole bean coffee machine, a juicer, a plancha and a barbecue outside, and a vegetable garden behind the house. Fish comes from the Poissonnerie du Golfe in Saint-Florent, bread from Jean-François Maestracci in Patrimonio.
