La Maison Favier — Restaurant in Arles

Approach with caution. I cannot reconcile the 5 Star reviews, comments and photographs with my own experience. My wife and I were on holiday with our two adult sons and one kindly booked us all to eat at La Mason Favier for dinner at 7.30 on Thursday the 12th of June based on the reviews and having visited the restaurant in the day time. Now the staff were very attentive and not intrusive and were very pleasant. The restaurant was pleasantly situated. We sat in the covered area. However, the covered area does not overlook Roman ruins as said in one review. The menu was very limited – two starters – two main dishes and two puddings. This is normally a very good sign. The problem was the size of the portions, the lack of flavour and seasoning and the overcooked white fish dish with almost no sauce. I asked for a Pernod and normally one gets a good measure in any French restaurant or bar. There was a small splash in the bottom of the glass. A very mean measure I thought. One son ordered a traditional gin and tonic to be served an odd lemon flavoured tonic; he drank it without much pleasure. The wine was OK – it was a local red Euros 57 at the bottom of the price range – the wines go up to about Euros 179.00. The same bottle we had retailed for about Euros 15.00 in the local Intermarche so a big mark up but that is not unusual.. My starter a raw tuna dish was the smallest I have ever been served – a third of the size I had had in other restaurants for a similar dish – it was good but just a few pieces of fish and a bit of salad. My wife had the Ancient tomatoes as a starter – a few pieces of tomatoes with a few pieces of dressed salad - it has no flavour. My wife and I had the same white fish dish which was served in a small bowl; it was soft, over cooked and not seasoned. We had been given a spoon and we wondered why because there was hardly any sauce. Then I noticed the very French couple on the adjoining table were served the same white fish dish in a large bowl with lots of sauce. Hmmmm! I thought - we get the small portions for Les Tourists. Now some will wonder why I did not complain at this point. I did not want to upset my son who had booked the restaurant and was very pleased with his efforts in speaking French and I did not want to spoil a family meal. I thought I will speak to the staff at the end on my own. My sons were eating their meals without complaint - the tuna for one and the Ancient tomato dish for the other and a meat dish each – but again the portions were small. My special chef made yoghurt with fruit and a biscuit was a lump of defrosting yoghurt with almost no flavour with a biscuit balance on top. The biscuit was delicious and a high grade virgin olive oil was poured over it at the table. Showing me the bottle the oil was in was a bit pretentious and the bottle was open anyway so it may not have contained the best olive oil. My wife’s desert was a piece of banana in a sort of white chocolate shaped like a small banana with a bit of crumble in the bottom which she said tasted of nothing. It was very small. My coffee was weak and watery – it was a long one – an Americano allonge. My sons had double espressos and they were full strength. The bill was brought to the table Euros 294.00 and I paid it without demur. It was a written bill and one could not read it but the number of items were correct and it looked about right. The family got up to go and while they were leaving I said I was going to wash my hands so I could speak to the owner manager. My French is limited but I managed to convey my displeasure and complain about les petite portions pour le tourist etc. I am not sure how good the staffs English was but suddenly no one understood any English at all. They told me everything was fine with the meal. I explained there would be no tip and I left. Now our experience may have been a one off and if you go you might get a better meal. But approach with caution. We would not go there again. We had much better and more reasonably priced meals elsewhere in St...

I have travelled the world extensively over 40 years. I ate at all restaurants ranging from pop & mom’s to Michelin three stars. This is my honest review of the restaurant Maison Favier in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, France.

Lovely restaurant with a charming terrace located on one of the town’s main squares — surrounded by many dining options, but this one clearly stands out. It’s among the highest-rated spots on Google Maps, and deservedly so.

The food was not only delicious but also refreshingly healthy. We started with a small salad topped with sardines — flavorful and light. Do note that portions are on the smaller side, which is perfect if you’ve had a big breakfast or are planning another meal later.

We followed with a risotto made from a another cereal than rice and beautifully prepared vegetables, and then shrimps accompanied by vegetables and a delicate, flavorful espuma sauce.

The highlight, however, was the dessert — a local specialty featuring both crispy and creamy textures, striking a perfect balance.

The staff were lovely throughout, making the experience even more enjoyable. Highly recommended for those seeking refined, light, and tasty cuisine in a...

I don’t usually leave reviews, but feel compelled to with this truly bizarre experience. We stopped in to simply have a drink. The host sat us down inside and immediately asked what we would like, while she was still holding the menus. We asked to see the menus, and she still stood there impatiently waiting for our order. So we quickly ordered as she seemed like she really needed us to order immediately. Our drinks came and the waitress asked us for payment even before the last drink had been put on the table. Another waitress then came again to ask for payment, which as it turned out was a different price to the first request for payment. We didn’t challenge them on why the prices were different as we just wanted to leave at that point. Altogether, a pretty strange and uncomfortable experience. Maybe the food is good, don’t know as we...