The exterior may be the quintessence of the Basque country, but the interior is 100% modern (pared-back walls, wooden floors and round designer-inspired tables). At the helm, Andrée Rosier (first woman Meilleur Ouvrier of France in 2007) and her spouse craft exquisitely unencumbered food. Our virtuoso never flaunts her technique, seeking rather to coax the taste and flavour out of first-class local produce, wild fish and shrimps and free-range poultry and squab, in particular. Ms Rosier also enjoys jazzing up her dishes with the occasional dash of exoticism ranging from lemongrass and nori seaweed to ginger and lemon preserves. Interestingly, the couple also operates a Basque restaurant in Tokyo.