St Tropez - Club 55
Frank's view 
'En saison - book well in advance for 1pm.'
The story goes that in 1955 the parents of Patrice de Colmont owned a cabana on Pampelone beach where Roger Vadim was filming “And God Created Woman” with Bridget Bardot. He asked Patrice’s parents if they would cater for the film crew and as result Le Club 55 was created.
The restaurant is now world famous catering for up to 1000 people between noon and 6pm each day during the summer season. Reservations are absolutely essential and you are likely to be sitting close to anyone from Bono to Ralph Lauren. There is valet parking for those who arrive by car and a Club 55 launch for those who arrive by boat.
The “club” has a private beach which becomes incredibly crowded during July and August, a beach bar, a boutique, and the restaurant.
The people watching is the best anywhere and never disappoints.
Patrice runs the restaurant incredibly tightly, working seven days a week, EVERY week. Only Patrice can seat guests and he appears to have an extraordinary memory for who is sitting where each day. The staff are efficient, but on occasions the service has been slow, and having “l’addition” arrive can be painfully slow, which is surprising when tables are always in demand.
Reservations are either for 1pm or 2.30pm during the peak months. The best approach is to make a 1pm reservation. Patrice allocates tables for the first round of bookings at 1pm. If you have a 2.30pm reservation you take pot luck on a table as the table you are allocated depends upon which become free. Very few people with 1pm reservations sit down to eat at 1pm and some do not sit down until almost 2pm.
€29 buys a bottle of the “house rose” (known by the waiting staff as the “reserve”) and is without doubt the most popular lunch accompaniment. Be warned though that it is very drinkable and one bottle generally leads to a second.
Much is made of the “panier de crudités” which is a large cork bowl holding lots of tomatoes, celery, and other crisp fresh raw vegetables. The price is €25. Beware; on one occasion we were hosting a party of 10 and ordered “panier de crudités”. The waiter delivered what appeared to be three bowls of crudités but when the bill arrived we were charged for ten! Absolutely outrageous! What a profit margin!
One thing about St Tropez which consistently amazes us is how much all the restaurants charge for fish. The fish market in St Tropez is excellent and the prices are low. However, all the restaurants charge high prices for fish and Club 55 is no exception. St Pierre is €46 per person, which is effectively €92 per fish, and Dauarde Royale is €49 per person. The fish is grilled and served with rice, embellished with raisins and pine nuts, and is very good….but so expensive!
Other dishes include the “hamburger de cheval” which is NOT a burger made from horse meat. It is a hamburger with a fried egg on top and is so named because the egg is deemed to be “the rider” of the horse!
The steaks are good.
However, the “poisson froid” (cold sea bass) is the best dish. Expensive at €44 but excellent.
This is a lunch time favourite.
During the summer of 2009 Club 55 showed no signs of being credit crunched, although the menu and wine prices remained at 2008 levels. Booking well in advance is still absolutley essential and will remain essential as the 2010 season takes off!
Go for the people watching and ambience. The food is generally good, but not exceptional.
For a comprehensive overview of the best (and worst) hotels and restaurants in St Tropez, check out... St Tropez - The Good, The Bad and The Ludicrously Expensive
Le Club 55 Boulevard Patch
Ramatuelle
Tel: 04 94 55 55 55
Be Frank: agree or disagree? What do you think?
