by Being a port city, it makes sense that Marseille’s signature dish is the giant fish stew bouillabaisse. It should be tackled at least once – as long as you want to fish. Avoid cheap versions: anything under €45 (£38) is cheap. Other local dishes are similarly sustainable: for them, beef stew in wine; and with grand aioli, which has hot cod on each side with a full floor show of vegetables, shellfish and, of course, garlic mayonnaise. You need a chilled bottle of Provençal rosé – or white Cassis – to do it justice. As the oldest city in France, Marseille also has plenty of foreign influence. Look out for fine food from the Mahgreb, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and, of course, Italy just along the coast.
For more Marseille inspiration, check out our guide to the city and its top hotels, nightlife and things to do.
Le Petit Nice
Undoubtedly the best, most inventive table in Marseille, from which come its three Michelin stars and throat-biting prices. The restaurant is on the ground level of the Le Petit Nice hotel, directly overlooking the beach – a tranquil setting for Gérald Passédat’s imagination and technical mastery. The French chef uses fish that no one has heard of, in dishes that no one else would have thought of at prices that only some can afford. The lunch menu is €195 (£165), the cheapest menu is €310 (£262). Meanwhile, the on-site bistro, Le 1917, has a slightly more affordable take on fine dining.
Contact: passport.fr
Reservations: Necessary
Prices: £££
Chez Michel
Most people who travel to Marseille will, at some point, be in search of bouillabaisse, the city’s flagship fish dish. It comes in two servings: first the stock as a soup, then a solid fish scrum that follows. Among the best is Chez Michel near Catalonia beach. The decor has not changed much since it opened in 1946, focusing instead on the cooking and the white-jacketed ceremony. Also, when they have £67 to spend. Price, of course, but the Visciano family has been running things for three generations. They are mostly in addition to a difficult job.
Contact: restaurant-michel-13.fr
Prices: £££
Reservations: Necessary
L’Epuisette
Apparently growing out of the rocks of the small fishing village of Vallon des Auffes), L’Epuisette opens magnificently to the sea – and its kitchen copes admirably with everything that swims in it. Guillaume Sourrieu’s place has been a reference point with a Michelin star in Marseille for years. It’s still amazing. The six course menu is £82. I doubt you will be disappointed.
Contact: l-epuisette.com
Prices: £££
Reservations: Necessary
AM by Alexandre Mazzia
Not far from the Vélodrome soccer stadium, AM is the new and brightest star in the gastronomic firmament of Marseilles. For someone with three Michelin stars, Mazzia’s name is small – but, as you might expect, its price is small. Having spent part of his childhood in the Congo, Mazzia infuses his cooking with colour, spice and invention, but you’ll need to be loaded to appreciate it. The cheapest lunch menu is £165, the cheapest dinner menu is £249. If you have that kind of money to spare, I wouldn’t hesitate.
Contact: alexandre-mazzia.com
Prices: £££
Reservations: Necessary
Chez Fonfon
Fonfon is a remarkable place – slotted into the Vallon des Auffes, an unlikely little fishing port in the heart of the city – and it does bouillabaisse as it’s meant to be done. It’s not cheap (€65/£55), but you get the full monty: first the stock is served as a soup, then the five-fish stew and all the palaver. The family restaurant, which opened in 1952, had time to round out other fish dishes and southern specialities.
Contact: chez-fonfon.com
Prices: £££
Reservations: Necessary
With Relais 50
The restaurant associated with the Hotel La Résidence du Vieux Port begins to take advantage of the best locations – right next to the Vieux Port, with a terrace that is more or less in the water. It complements this with vaguely retro décor and inventive Med cooking. If you are going to lunch or dine around the old port – and you really should; it is the heart of the city – then the Relais 50 has to be a serious contender for your custom. The value for money helps make it stand out.
Contact: hotel-residency-marseille.com
Prices: ££
Reservations: Necessary
By Peron
A Marseille classic, perched on rocks just above the sea on the corniche. The food is expensive but brilliantly handled, especially in the fish department, and comes with a privilege. During the day, the outdoor wooden terrace has perhaps the most unrestricted sea views in Marseille. At night, the light spreads right over the windows; there are pins from boats and islands a little further out, making the night infinite and personal.
Contact: restaurant-peron.com
Prices: £££
Booking: Necessary
Chez Madie Les Galinettes
This friendly, bustling place on the Vieux Port is a point of reference for Provençal specialties – both fish and meat (including a rare chance in France to eat lamb testicles). Contemporary art on the walls, a terrace out front and the best of Marseille on your plate. The beef dôbe in wine might be the best in town, and the bouillabaisse isn’t bad at all either.
Contact: madielesgalinettes.com
Prices: £
Reservations: Necessary
Esplaï du Grand Bar des Goudes
From the center of Marseille, take Bus No. 20 out to Les Goudes, where the last stretch of the city gives way to high rocks, deep ponds, a pint fishing port and ramshackle cabins where real Marseilles spent the weekend drinking pastis and barbecuing fish for. generations. Here you will find the almost pleasant Esplaï du Grand Bar des Goudes, where the seafood is good, the bouillabaisse and bourride are first class (and cheaper than the posher establishments back in the centre), the views just above the port and the sea. smacking, and the Marseilles atmosphere perfectly at its picaresque best.
Contact: grandbardesgoudes.fr
Prices: ££
Booking: Necessary
Signature
Coline Faulquier is the young leader of a young team that has already bagged a Michelin star for this location a street or two behind the soccer stadium. Hers is a contemporary take on Mediterranean cuisine and, as you’d expect in Marseille, the emphasis is on fish. Her aioli is already famous – crunchy vegetables with hawthorn and monkfish and the necessary sauces. Lunch menus start at £41, dinner at £106.
Contact: signaturemarseille.com
Prices: £££
Booking: Necessary
How we choose
Each restaurant on this curated list has been tried and tested by our destination expert, who visited to provide you with their insider perspective. We cover a range of budgets, from neighborhood favorites to Michelin-starred restaurants – to suit all types of travelers – and consider food, service, best tables, atmosphere and price in our recommendations. We update this list regularly to keep up with the latest openings and provide up-to-date recommendations.
