Restaurant Le Saint Esprit — Restaurant in Marseille

…Is inventive and proof of a dynamic, vibrant Marseille food scene. Young and gracious, the team welcomed us for a meal by turns surprising, exciting, and fun.

Essentially a wine bar offering small Mediterranean sharing plates, large pintxos; look elsewhere if you’re looking for a traditional entrée/plat/dessert. Sit outside as the charming Panier street is the real dining room.

Natural wines from small producers are the canvas - in our case, bubbles from Burgundy, a vital white Rhone our main companion, a macerated Luberon white bringing addictive hints of liquor to desert and beyond.

The menu is heavy on sea and veg. Think salvos of fresh Mediterranean flavours that use aromatics and chlorophyll (dill fronds, coriander flowers, mint) for oomph. Some minor missteps can happen, easily forgiven and quickly moved on from in our case. Cuttlefish tartare with hazelnuts and an herb garden on top of it. Stunning shrimp brought to smoky, translucent, finger-licking perfection on the plancha. Tuna crudo on charred green beans sauced with goat-milk yoghurt, sumptuous. Bar/branzino with delicate, comforting, beurre blanc and Swiss chard kumquat garnish. Beautiful pain de campagne. Stunning last impressions: straciatella and lovage ice cream on caramel-y granola/crumble. Barely outdone by a chocolate mousse with laurel ice cream, laurel oil and… nuoc mam. Oh my.

Come for the relaxed charms of Le Panier, enjoy the team’s welcome, passion, and deft touch. Wishing Le Saint Esprit success...

I’m a bit surprised with some of the reviewers! It seems that people stumble upon le saint esprit with a big appetite but the reality is, this is high quality gastronomy. If you show up starving, yes, you will surely pay a pretty penny to leave full! But you can’t even enjoy the food, really take in the quality of the ingredients and the flavours when you are shoveling it down! The food is intentional in every sense of the word, and so should the clients. Come here for a culinary experience…! Not to mention, the wines were delicious and out of the ordinary, the waitress knew her stuff and was efficient and charming. Sitting in the street was fun but going inside to see the action in the kitchen was also a treat! Overall, a solid dining experience because I knew what I was getting into and if you are willing and able, the dishes are truly worth...

So lovely!! 100% would recommend. We arrived without a booking but the very kind waiter made an extra table for us. I really love the style of dining where you share snacks and plates between a few people. As everything comes out as soon as it's ready, it's incredibly fresh! I'd never had cuttlefish tartare before and it was sensational. The puddings as well were an absolute delight including a fascinating herby granita dish. Also they were incredibly generous with the bread (I think we had six baskets of their delicious sourdough in total, with no extra charge!). In terms of how much to order, as a group of three we had three snacks, two larger assiettes, and tried all three desserts, including the cheese. If you're adventurous and a big fan of French food, you're going to...