Pialha

Rating: 13.5
Author: Gault&Millau

247 boulevard du Mont-Boron, 06300 Nice, France

13.5/20
Chef's Restaurant

BOOK

4 PHOTOS

Location: Nice
Chef: Benjamin Millard
Cooking: French | Local | Mediterranean | Modern
Style: With friends

Budget (€)

Indicative price per person (excl. drinks)

25 to 45

Gault&Millau's review 2026

13,5/20

Chef's Restaurant

Pialha is the “tavern 2.0” conceived by chef Benjamin Millard, whom we first met in Lyon at L’Agastache. Recently opened in the working-class neighborhood of Riquier, behind the harbor, this chef-turned-tavern owner has brought his simple yet powerful vision to this cozy little spot: market-driven cuisine that’s lively, spontaneous, and creative, where every plate tells a story. Working solo, he greets guests, cooks, serves, and sets the pace for each table, transforming the meal into a special and generous experience—unpretentious yet executed with total mastery. The lunch menus (updated every Monday), with their evocative names—such as “Régal des Braves” at €25 for three courses or “Temps des Saveurs” at €32 for four courses—perfectly illustrate this technical mastery. The spiral of winter vegetables or the creamy celeriac is paired with a tarragon and chervil sorbet under a warm Jerusalem artichoke sauce; the roasted sea bass, like a “croque-monsieur” of the sea, while the pork loin, confit for ten hours at 58°C, accompanied by house-made gnocchi and butternut squash purée infused with a praline made from roasted seeds, seals the deal. But it’s with his reinterpretation of Bleu d’Auvergne that the Auvergne-born chef really hits the mark: presented as a true cheese dish, the blue cheese is served as ice cream, as an espuma in gavottes—much like Sicilian cannoli—and as a meringue… simply stunning. Next comes the apple, in a playful Tarte Tatin style, cooked in ribbons, served with ice cream made with the chef’s grandmother’s hazelnut oil. The wine cellar, curated to include about twenty selections, features prices as reasonable as the menu items. Following in the footsteps of Yves Camdeborde and “bistronomy,” it’s now time for Benjamin Millard’s “tavergonomy.”