Modern Caprese: French restaurants reinvent tomato-mozza

It's undoubtedly the most symbolic recipe of the summer season. Because it's refreshing and because it smells of Italy. But that doesn't stop the famous tomato-mozzarella from inspiring chefs to revisit it in a variety of dishes.

Bérangère Chanel Published on 8/11/25 at 9:43 AM

Mozzarella transformed into melting snow or emulsion, or slipped into steamed bread. Tomatoes as the most precious of ingredients, with a focus on ripening. The tomato-mozzarella salad, known as "caprese" when the Italian tradition is respected, topping its main protagonists with basil leaves and a generous drizzle of olive oil, is far from being a recipe to tire of. You can reinvent it in a thousand ways to enjoy it all summer long. The proof is in these ten addresses in Paris and the surrounding region.

L'Atelier des Augustins, Lyon

a hundred kilometers from the capital of the Gauls, the Brin d'Auvergne farm has its own herd of buffalo. Since 2021, Marie-Lise Masson and Thierry Mounier have been making the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region's first farmhouse buffalo mozzarella, certified organic. A product of the French terroir that chef Nicolas Guilloton has decided to work with to make the Italian recipe his own. With his executive chef Thomas Belval, at L'Atelier des Augustins, he relies on the depth of flavors by preserving dried tomatoes in sweet clover for 24 hours. On the plate, this is paired with a mature mozzarella, also worked in emulsion. The composition is completed by a concentrated tomato infused with tagetes. This combination is also reflected in the sorbet that dominates the plate.

Where? 17 rue Hippolyte Flandrin, Lyon 1
See Gault&Millau's review of L'Atelier des Augustins

Les Oliviers, Bandol

Following in the footsteps of the modern dishes he created during his TV appearance on Top Chef, Martin Féragus puts a fresh spin on the essential summer tomato-mozzarella dish. Here on the Côte d'Azur, where people are looking to cool off when summer is in full swing, they're bringing the temperature down with Italian cheese. This former chef of the Meurice and the George V puts the mozzarella in the freezer beforehand to make a snow. As for tomatoes, he opts for the generosity of beef heart, which he dresses like a full salad with ginger, shallots, aromatic herbs, smoked anchovies and black olives. The chef completes his revisitation with a green zebra tomato and basil sorbet.

Where to find us Hôtel Ile Rousse, 25 boulevard Louis Lumière, Bandol

Prairial, Lyon

On the strength of his many years' experience working with great flavor explorers such as Yannick Alléno, Emmanuel Renaut and Jean-François Piège, 3-Toque chef Gaëtan Gentil has begun to think about tomatoes. What could be described as a contemporary revisiting of the famous tomato-mozzarella gives a gastronomic air to this popular and classic dish. In fact, it's one of his signature dishes. The chef works with whole tomatoes. First pruned, it is then dehydrated for 24 to 36 hours, depending on its size. The aim is to concentrate the flavors to obtain a melt-in-the-mouth texture on the inside and a candied appearance on the outside. Even mozzarella has a modern adaptation: Gaëtan Gentil slips it... into steamed bread!

Where? 1 place Hubert Mounier, Lyon 2
See the Gault&Millau review of Prairial

gaëtan Gentil

Le George Terrace, Paris

Tomato-mozza can also be enjoyed in a palatial version. This is possible when you sit down at the terrace of the Four Seasons George V. It's a no-brainer when you consider that one of the chefs at this prestigious establishment is Italian. Simone Zanoni focuses on the simplicity of ingredients, concentrating solely on taste: the tomatoes he grows in the hotel's kitchen garden, located in Versailles, in the Domaine de Madame Elisabeth, the former garden of King Louis XVI's sister. The Lombardy-born chef combines his homemade tomatoes with burrata. All at the palatial price of 45 euros.

Where? 31 avenue George V, Paris 8
See Gault&Millau's review of Le George

D'Amore, Bonifacio

When it comes to tomato-mozzarella, there are two camps: the purists and the daring. Italo Bassi belongs to the latter. Down below the magnificent Corsican citadel, the Italian chef, accompanied by Edoardo Menna, dares to break with tradition (and one might even say defy Italian prohibitions), by adding Modena balsamic vinegar to the caprese salad. A twist that undeniably adds a touch of sweetness to this composition entitled "Fleur de Bufala".

Where? 51 quai Jérôme Comparetti, 20169 Bonifacio
See Gault&Millau's review of D'Amore

La Famiglia, Paris

Founded in 1991, Michela Calicchio and Giovanni Fuligna's La Famiglia offers two ways to salivate over tomato-mozza. Those who prefer burrata will choose the Pugliese variety. No less than 125g of the creamy cheese tops a tartar of datterino tomatoes, topped with basil leaves. For mozzarella lovers, it's the Neapolitan version that should be chosen, with a bocconcino (a variety of smaller mozzarella balls), accompanied by candied tomatoes.

Where? 2 Rue Waldeck-Rousseau, 75017 Paris
See Gault&Millau's review of La Famiglia

Casadelmar, Porto-Vecchio

It's true that the enchanting setting of the Isle of Beauty makes you want to savor a plate of tomato-mozzarella. Proximity to Italy or sunny weather? Whatever the case, you'll find what you're looking for at many addresses, including the most prestigious, such as chef Fabio Bragagnolo's table at the Hotel Casadelmar. at lunchtime, on the grill side and in the lounge restaurant, a salad bar offers the famous caprese salad, titillating the taste buds with multicolored tomatoes. And for cheese, the chef prefers burrata di bufala.

Where to eat? Route de Palombaggia, 20137 Porto-Vecchio
See Gault&Millau's review of Casadelmar

f. Rossi

Les Amis de Messina, Paris

What if we were to shake things up to the point of completely rethinking the texture of tomato-mozzarella? In other words, from solid to liquid. This is the somewhat crazy gamble of Les Amis des Messina, whose menu is dedicated to Sicilian traditions. For antipasti, this regular restaurant offers a cold tomato and burrata soup. The starter is in fact a velouté that marries the two essential ingredients, without forgetting the other symbolic markers of this Italian recipe: olive oil and basil. The revisit is not boring, as roasted almonds add crunch to this daring choice.

Where? 81 rue Réaumur, 75002 Paris
See Gault&Millau's review of Les Amis de Messina

Sublime, Dijon

In Burgundy, chef Giovanni Spataro achieves a tour de force in his gastronomic restaurant, run alongside pastry chef Salvina Buttaci. He has succeeded in presenting two popular recipes from the Italian repertoire in a single starter. We're talking, of course, about tomato-mozzarella, replaced here by burrata. The revisit revolves around "pappa al pomodoro", a classic Tuscan dish based on slow-cooked tomatoes, basil and stale bread. In this new take on "tomato-mozza", we depart from the freshness we're used to without going off topic, since all the protagonists of the recipe we're interested in are present. The composition is refined by a consommé of tomato water and elderflower vinegar. Quite a confusing program.

Where? 24 Rue Bannelier, 21000 Dijon
See Gault&Millau's review of Sublime

Il Cuoco Galante, Paris

This trattoria in the 9ᵉ arrondissement has the good taste to prove that it's not just prescribed for devouring fresh pasta, even if it is indeed the paccheri and other pappardelle that have made its reputation. So she doesn't forget to include caprese salad in the antipasti section. You'll have to come at lunchtime to be convinced, especially as the plate dares to add a touch of sweetness, not with balsamic vinegar, but with a raspberry caramel that combines tomatoes with mozzarella di Bufala.