An absolute must for me, of course, was to include La Colombe d’Or on this Grand Tour, and so I checked in shortly after they were able to reopen again after the official ‘deconfinement’. The great quality of La Colombe d’Or is that it makes me feel that I am coming home every time I walk through its doors. As usual, I made sure I arrived in time for lunch taken on the beautiful terrace, sitting against the wall near the entrance. For starters I ordered ‘comme d’habitude’ La Colombe’s famous plate of hors-d’oeuvres – regional delights including sardines, saffron rice, couscous, anchovies – and its equally famous basket of salad. Forget difficult haute-cuisine dishes. No nonsense here: they serve you the real thing. The Roux family’s legendary hotel and restaurant in Saint-Paul-de-Vence in the South of France is famed around the world for its consummate restaurant offering authentic Provençale cuisine, its beautiful and inimitable style and, hugely important, its magnificent collection of modern art. La Colombe d’Or, which is celebrating its centenary this year, opened as the café-bar Chez Robinson in 1920 but quickly grew into a small hotel and restaurant. Its 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 graced by paintings that he had bought or perhaps exchanged for a stay or a few meals. This unique setting is home to works by Miro, Matisse, Calder, Chagall, Buffet, Braque and the great master himself, Pablo Picasso. And the art collection is still growing. After 100 years, nothing has really changed: it is still a magnet for great artists, film directors, actors, singers and writers. Following in the footsteps of Yves Montand, Simone Signoret, Lino Ventura, Alain Delon and Romy Schneider, today’s stars such as Bono, Michael Caine and Quentin Tarantino can be seen lunching at a long table on the terrace. And it’s still the perfect place to unwind, especially in these unprecedented times. Here’s to the next 100 years. Mes félicitations.