Villa Gallici in Aix-en-Provence
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La Belle France, May 2006 |
Hemingway said that he hoped that Heaven would be as good as the Ritz . . . but he never saw the Villa Gallici. This is hotel heaven with better weather. If it feels like you have walked right into a House & Garden centerfold . . . to a large extent, you have. In 1993, the talented interior decorators Gil Dez and Charles Montemarco gave themselves free rein with an 18th-century mansion on the north edge of Aix. The intervening years have only added a gloss of real-time patina to this jewel-like property.
Unless you are allergic to lavender, painted wood, and chintz, it will be hard to find anything not to like. In fact, since it’s just about impossible to imagine any way to improve this inn, you can play with trying to pinpoint a detail — any detail — that isn’t pretty near perfect. (In our case — after long reflection — we think we’d replace the etched glass goblets with Biot glass, but we have to admit this is a very minor change.)
Everything else is — there’s that word again — perfect. The milk-soap wrapped up in raffia ribbons in the bathrooms; an outdoor swimming pool surrounded by fragrant Provençal plants; the light jazz playing in the lounge; freshly-pressed, embroidered linens; vases full of red roses in the guest rooms; the cushioned, wroughtiron chairs on the stone terrace when you want sunny Sunday brunch; and the overstuffed loveseats next to the carved fireplaces when the Mistral blows.
Last time (LA BELLE FRANCE, January 1999), we stayed in room number 20, a duplex with a giant bathroom whose highlight was a freestanding, clawfoot bathtub. This time, we stayed in room number 15, 345€, an aquamarine double with French doors that open out to the garden. (This room has its extra-large bathtub in a white marble surround.) Distracting modern appliances like color cable television and mini-bars are tucked behind decorative closet doors.
The kitchen in this Relais & Châteaux property never attempts to outclass the decor. The cuisine stays simple although the added grace notes — like the frosted champagne glasses — create a powerfully romantic mood. The scampi is fine, and the mushroom risotto has just the right chewiness. Nevertheless, the brief menu would get very repetitive after a few days. The chef has mastered balsamic reduction. (It shows up in the risotto, in the green beans, you name it.) However, since the restaurant is making no pretensions to anything but charm, it hardly matters.
When dining inside, long-legged people who like straight-back chairs may find that the low-slung, fringed boudoir chairs give them the impression of dining in a chintz Lamborghini. This is no problem when dining on the terrace which has standard armchairs. The wine list also aspires to charm over weight. The 2003 Vacqueras Sang des Cailloux is 50€, and there’s a 1997 Cristal, 250€, if you insist. A three-course dinner for two will cost approximately 150€.
Villa Gallici
Avenue de la Violette, 13100 Aix-en-Provence
Tel: 04.42.23.29.23.
Fax: 04.42.96.30.45.
www.villagallici.com.
Twenty-two rooms and suites from 220€ to 400€ (low season) and 300€ to 640€ (high season). Breakfast: 22€ or 28€. No elevator. All major credit cards. |
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Cuisine |
Decor |
Service |
Wine List |
Value |
TOTAL |
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19 |
17 |
20 |
17 |
20 |
93 |
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