Ouvertures d’hôtels

🍕 Monaco-based restaurateur Riccardo Giraudi brings Genoa’s Zeffirino's essence to Paris and Monaco, with the Belloni family's blessing, who've run it since 1939. Paris' Zeffirino seats 50 inside, 30 on the patio, featuring interior design by Cédric Capron. Exec chefs Thierry Paludetto and Alexandre Bousquières offer a menu with 9 fresh homemade pasta dishes (€27-€74), other Italian specialties, and 8 desserts (€14-€24). The venue, employing about 30 staff, serves the Belloni family's signature pesto and is open daily.

📚 Lagardère Travel Retail France expanded at Gare de Paris Nord, Europe's busiest station with 700,000 daily visitors and third in the world, by opening a new Fnac store with a cosy Café upstairs from its flagship RELAY store. The 150m² area, offering 40 seats, replaces the former Brasserie l'Etoile du Nord, providing beverages, pastries, and sandwiches. Vincent Romet, CEO, sees it as a "new invitation to travel," meeting travelers' evolving needs.

🍽 La Flottille, a renowned restaurant in the park of the Château de Versailles, Yvelines, reopened on June 1 under the guidance of Michelin-starred chef Jean-Baptiste Lavergne-Morazzani. Established in 1895 and located in front of André Le Nôtre's Grand Canal, La Flottille has undergone a renovation by Versailles firm Versions. The menu features local suppliers like M.O.F. baker Frédéric Lalos, La Ferme du Pré, and La Ferme de La Tremblaye, and includes French classics, seasonal dishes, and shared options.

🏨 The Interglobe group, already managing 30 mid-range hotels in India, launched a new high-end hotel brand, Miiro, in Europe. Miiro's first hotel, Grand Hôtel Cayré, with 123 renovated rooms by English designer Michaelis Boyd, opened on July 15 in Paris, France. The brand emerged after acquiring the independent K+K portfolio of ten European establishments in 2020. Miiro will soon expand to Barcelona with Hotel Borneta in August, followed by London's Templeton Garden next year, and two locations in Vienna by mid-2025. Paris's Miiro features a 'refresh room,' a la carte services, a 90-seat restaurant run by Bruno Brangea with an average lunch cost of €35 and €75 for dinner, and a 1920s-themed cocktail bar, the Officine Bar, led by Oscar Blackstone.

💻 Console SecretBox implemented their gift box solution for the reopening of the historical hotel, the Abbaye des Vaux-de-Cernay. Located in a serene nature reserve near Paris, the hotel offers a refined experience. The Console SecretBox allows personalized gift boxes that reflect the establishment's unique character, intuitive shop management, secure and simple client journeys, shared payment options for group gifts, and is an innovative, environmentally responsible choice. The solution is commission-free and labeled as #greentech.

🍣 Founded by Adrien Albou, Le Cheng, Marlon, and Mendel Lévi, Hando Parisian Handroll features Chef Chiharu Takada, formerly of Takara, and opened its Sèvres location in October 2022 with a new Vendôme venue featuring an 18-meter counter. Renowned for their handrolls (€6-€18), the menu includes a Wagyu A5 handroll and offers sashimis (€14-€29), nigiris (€8-€14), and traditional dishes like dashi-marinated edamame with upcoming seasonal pastries.

🏖️ Mathieu Pacaud transformed the old Saint-Tropez beach, Le Neptune (unchanged since 1978), into Cybèle Ramatuelle, a sea-inspired establishment. Designed by Cordelia de Castellane of Dior Maison, it seats 180 and serves Mediterranean cuisine. Average cost is between 70-100 euros, with beach dining available on 80 mattresses. Open 10 am to 7 pm until October, employing about 50 staff.

🍴 Guide Michelin expands to provincial level in China, targeting six cities: Xiamen, Fuzhou, Quanzhou, Nanjing, Suzhou, and Yangzhou. The Fujian selection to be revealed in late 2024, followed by Jiangsu in early 2025, highlighting unique local culinary traditions. Gwendal Poullennec, International Director of the Michelin Guides, announced this during a press conference in Shanghai, marking a new global recognition for the regions.

🏡 The DoubleTree by Hilton opened recently in Nice's Iconic complex, designed by architect Daniel Libeskind. It marks the American group's debut in the French Riviera city with 105 rooms, meeting spaces, and a fitness corner. The Pesca restaurant, featuring a unique fish counter concept, is set to open by the new academic year. The Iconic building will also house shops, a gym, two schools, and offices by September.

🍽 Romain Fornell, a creator of about fifteen establishments in Barcelona and Costa Brava, advised Moma Group to open a high-quality tapas bar in Paris. The Michelin-starred chef of Caelis designed a menu with traditional tapas (ham croquettes at €7; 100% Iberian ham from Joselito at €13; fried artichokes at €8) and modern dishes (beef carpaccio with mustard foie gras vinaigrette at €22; beef with garlic at €19). Casa Luisa, located in the old La Muette train station in Paris's 16th district, is open Monday to Saturday, from 11 am to midnight, with no reservations needed. Scenographer Mary Erlingsen created an informal yet elegant atmosphere with original oak, Medici velvet curtains, Moorish wallpaper by Iksel, and a mix of Chesterfield sofas and bistro chairs.