Elsa Marcel Ravin has returned for the 2026 season at the Monte-Carlo Beach in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin — Michelin-starred, committed to the sea in ways that go well beyond the view, and this year presenting a new menu built around the Jardin Marin concept. Quieter than Monaco proper, set above the coastline in a protected nature corridor where birdsong competes with the sound of the waves, it is – overwhelmingly – the oasis in Monaco’s bustling dining scene.
The restaurant reopened on 14th April under its new official name, Elsa Marcel Ravin — a rebranding that formalises the fact that two-starred Chef Marcel Ravin has well and truly taken over the kitchen. It is clear that this is his restaurant now, shaped by his vision, his roots in Martinique, and his deep, almost philosophical relationship with the sea.
What the sea dictates
The Jardin Marin menu, developed by Marcel Ravin and Chef Domenico D’Antonio, is built around a principle that sounds simple but is anything but in practice: cook what is caught. The menu changes according to what the local fishermen bring in that day, which means the seafood on your plate is not only fresh but often unfamiliar — species that rarely appear in restaurants precisely because they are not always available, not always in demand, and not always caught in sufficient numbers to be commercially attractive.
And that is the point. Ravin and D’Antonio are making a pointed argument about how we eat from the sea — that the lesser-known, less-fished species are often the most interesting, and that chefs have a responsibility to show diners what they are missing and why it matters. It is a more sustainable relationship with seafood, and one the restaurant has been advocating for years, certified by the Mr. Goodfish label of the World Ocean Network.
The result on the plate is daring in the best sense. Tuna Rossini, iodised celery with plankton, sauces built from marine flora, steaming with seawater — these are not gimmicks but genuine expressions of culinary intelligence. Ravin and D’Antonio describe their menus as designed “to resonate with the ecosystem like the mermaids’ bewitching siren song, mysterious and captivating”. The poetry is not misplaced.
Vegetables come from the Domaine d’Agerbol on the heights of Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, the produce arriving at the kitchen with a lineage as considered as the fish.
The setting does a lot of work
The dining room, designed by India Mahdavi and inspired by the 1930s aesthetic of the Monte-Carlo Beach hotel, is inviting in its azure tones and soft light — but it is the sun-drenched terrace, elegant in its white simplicity, that draws you back, with nothing between you and the Mediterranean.
It is, in the best possible way, a complete escape from the Principality’s usual pace — and a reminder that Marcel Ravin, one of SBM’s most celebrated chef, continues to earn every accolade that comes his way. Few chefs working in Monaco today match his commitment to sustainable produce and fresh, ethically sourced seafood, and fewer still combine that conviction with an imagination that shows no sign of running dry.
Elsa Marcel Ravin is open Tuesday to Saturday, from 12.15pm to 1.30pm and from 7.15pm to 9.30pm.
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Photo source: Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer