La Belle Vie hotel & restaurant opens a new culinary chapter in Saint-Hilaire-d’Ozilhan, not far from Nos Jours Heureux Festival
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Just a stone’s throw from the millenary Pont dth cenu Gard edifice and Uzès, the village of Saint-Hilaire-d’Ozilhan welcomes a new destination set to leave a lasting impression, simply baptized La Belle Vie.
After several months of renovation, this charming property has been revived by Michelin-starred chef Denis Martin and his wife Joana, a couple driven by the desire to blend genuine hospitality, local terroir, and the art of Provençal living. Therefore, La Belle Vie tends to reconnect with its history by opening a new chapter, one of a house with heart, deeply rooted in its terroir, and looking firmly to the future. By AP
Set in a typical 19th-century mansion, called mas, surrounded by a leafy park, the La Belle Vie establishment is more than just a traditional hotel and restaurant combo, since it may be considered as a true sanctuary in the heart of Provence Gardoise. Its 11 rooms and suites, decorated in a refined and soothing style, open onto the surrounding nature. The heated pool, shaded terraces, and cosy reading and aperitif corners, beneath century-old plane trees invite guests to savour the southern French lifestyle. Open year-round, this charming venue is ideal for a romantic escape, a relaxing getaway, or a gastronomic retreat.
On the culinary side, the founder and chef Denis Martin offers a style that reflects his Avignon roots, so to say a clear and refined gastronomy that prioritises respect for the product. His dishes pay homage to ancestral traditions and local producers, combining fresh vegetables and herbs, a fine sense of cooking, and the quality of southern meats and vegetables. There is no unnecessary showmanship, but just a search for some authentic emotion, served in a setting, where his wife Joana Martin ensures guests are welcomed with elegance and warmth.
As far as we know, the chef’s path reflects some constant dedication, since trained in Avignon, he worked in prestigious establishments, such as the Hôtel de l’Europe and Le Prieuré Baumanière, before joining Daniel Boulud in Canada. Upon returning to Provence, he supported another gastronomic location, better known as The Marcel restaurant in Sète to earn its Michelin star in 2019, where he served as executive chef for three years. With La Belle Vie, he now embraces a human-scale project, a shared vision where authenticity and complicity flourish. Thus, each dinner becomes there a collective story, linking the actions of producers, the know-how of artisans, and the creativity of a chef, rooted in his own South.
“We wished to preserve the soul of this place, while bringing in our own identity, such as honest cuisine, warm hospitality, and simplicity, as a our way of life”, explains Denis Martin.
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Behind its stone walls, 11 elegant rooms invite you to slow down, natural wood, soothing hues, wide windows, overlooking the garden and heated swimming pool. Along the park‘s paths, corners dedicated to reading, aperitifs, or relaxing, evoke the sweetness of a sort of eternal Provençal summer, spent under the shade of comforting plane trees. Indeed, in warmer months, the spacious terrace becomes a natural extension of the dining room, turning every cocktail or dinner into a real open-air experience, where at the table the soul of the place can be expressed.
For the summer season, Denis Martin offers a surprising Menu Émotion, a multi-course experience, where each dish interacts with the Gard region’s terroir. The adventure begins with canapés with local accents, including anchoïade and marinated fennel tartlet, a reinterpretation of Nîmes cod brandade, or Taggiasche olive brioche, served with olive oil, from Moulin de Romanou. As a prelude, a flaky brioche bun with oregano pairs with a fresh basil pesto and the liveliness of green apple. A colorful composition follows, where summer is reflected on the plate, where seafood register is intensely expressed.
This is the case with seared tuna, enhanced by burnt peppers, along sea bream rolled in black lemon powder, accompanied by shellfish and samphire, before giving way to roasted veal shank, with guanciale, enhanced with grilled chard and a full-bodied jus. The sweet finale celebrates Provençal apricots, embodied in a hazelnut flavored financier, plus caramel cream, and apricot sorbet. As you can imagine, a genuine combination of freshness and indulgence, just before a selection of fruity mignardises, through crystallized herbs, and herbal infusions, bringing this gourmet ballet to a happy end.
La Belle Vie restaurant & guesthouse, 4 avenue Paul Blisson, 30210 Saint Hilaire d’Ozilhan (France) / Phone: 00 33 (0)4 66 37 29 15. More details on their official website.
Nearby, visitors can enrich their stay by exploring Uzès and its ducal heritage, touring the vineyards of Tavel and Châteauneuf-du-Pape, or discovering Avignon and Nîmes with their Roman legacies. The garrigue, the banks of the Gardon, and nearby hilltop villages complete this idyllic setting, where serenity meets some true cultural richness. For example, from August 21 to 24, 2025, the fancy village of Saint-Bonnet-du-Gard, nestled between scrubland and a primitive Roman church, dated from the 9th century, hosted the inaugural edition of the multi-faceted and promising Nos Jours Heureux Festival.
Conceived by French soprano Julie Fuchs, who also serves as its artistic director, this multicultural event aims to create a unique dialogue between classical music and Argentine tango styles. The program has combined concerts, balls, dance workshops, masterclasses, musical tours, and family activities, with the ambition of lending music accessible to all audiences. The line-up has notably featured soprano singer Monroe Rigby, mezzo-soprano one Julie Robard-Gendre, pianist Alphonse Cemin, and the Barcelona-based La Juan Romana orchestra, performing for the first time in France.
“I was eager to let the emotion of music resonate in my home region, by opening it up to other artistic forms” says Julie Fuchs.
More details about the upcoming edition on their official website.
