Consistently rated one of the top ten best restaurants in the world, Le Louis XV, at the Hotel de Paris in Monaco, is possibly the most exquisite dining experience on the Cote d'Azur.

Frank Cerutti and Pascal Bardet are the current in-house chefs watched over by world famous Alain Ducasse, who opened the Plaza Athénée Restaurant in Paris and Alain Ducasse Restaurant at the Essex House in New York, and owns several superior dining establishments in France. In 1990, his Monaco venue became the first hotel restaurant to be awarded the most prestigious of culinary awards: three stars in the coveted Michelin Red Guide.

The Hotel de Paris and its sublime Belle Epoque architecture is home to this crème de la crème of restaurants, located in the heart of Monaco, facing the equally famous and popular (albeit less expensive) Café de Paris and the principality's landmark Casino.

Anyone who is anyone has dined here in the opulent surroundings of gilded pilasters and cornices: from Prince Albert, Elton John and Formula 1 racing driver Michael Schumacher (also a resident of Monaco) to members of the rich business elite like David and Simon Reuben who made their fortunes in the aluminium trade. Private jets usually park at Cannes Airport (not Nice - that would be for the price conscious) and you can take a helicopter to Monaco, about 12 minutes away or 45 minutes by car should the weather turn sour.

At Le Louis XV, you can forget the budget: their cheapest lunch menu will set you back 140 euros per person (though this is a bargain that includes a starter, main, dessert, wine chosen by their sommelier and coffee). But if you are thinking of going during the Grand Prix, be warned that the price jumps to near 420 euros per person (not including drinks) and on the race weekend itself expect the price to top the 1,000 euros per person mark!

Is this place worth all the fuss? In a word, yes. It should be on one of those lists called "10 things to do before you die." Their magical Italo-Provençal cuisine - using ingredients like blue lobster, caviar, coco beans, wild raspberries, black and white truffles and Tuscan pasta - consistently provides va-va-voom. Try their pan-fried Gamberoni de San Remo fish coupled with crunchy "hearts" of red snapper and chanterelle mushrooms or apple-stuffed "Riviera-style" capon for two. Even the best artist would be impressed by the presentation but then there are the bites bursting with flavours of the Mediterranean.

The amuse-bouches are works of art arranged beautifully, like flowers in a little hand-painted glass vase but with tiny baby organic salad vegetables almost too pretty to eat. Plus, it is the ultimate place to see and be seen. Make sure you don't wear jeans or shorts even at lunch time (jackets and ties are mandatory) and book at least two to three weeks in advance.

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