La Colombe d’Or has the amazing quality of making me feel that I am coming home every time I walk through its doors. I always try to arrive at lunchtime, taking a seat on the beautiful terrace and ordering a tray of classic hors-d’oeuvres—regional delights including sardines, saffron rice, couscous, anchovies, crudités. You immediately unwind, no matter how hectic your life is. The Roux family’s legendary hotel and restaurant in Saint-Paulde-Vence in the South of France is famed around the world for its sublimely charming restaurant offering authentic Provençale cuisine, its beautiful and inimitable style and, last but not least, its magnificent collection of modern art. It opened in 1920 as a café-bar Chez Robinson but quickly expanded into a small hotel and restaurant. La Colombe d’Or’s friendly atmosphere and Paul Roux’s passionate interest in the arts attracted some of the great artists of the day and the walls were soon adorned by paintings that he had bought or exchanged for a stay or a few meals. Magnificent works by Miro, Matisse, Calder, Chagall, Buffet, Braque and the great master himself, Pablo Picasso, now form part of this unique setting. As it approaches its centenary in 2020, nothing has really changed. It is still a magnet for great artists, film directors, actors, singers and writers. Emulating Renoir, Yves Montand, Simone Signoret, Lino Ventura, Alain Delon and Romy Schneider, today stars such as Bono, Michael Caine, Bernard-Henri Levy and Quentin Tarantino can be seen lunching at a long table on the terrace. And the art collection is still growing.

 Copyright 2017 Mart Engelen