Le Donjon - Domaine Saint-Clair

This stylish Normandy manor commissioned a fresco by Jean-Charles Castelbajac for its dining room, creating the perfect foil for the view of the sun setting over the town of Étretat and its cliffs on the horizon. Chef Rodolphe Pottier (whom we first met in his eponymous restaurant in Rouen) has wholeheartedly embraced the seaside theme and offers two menus in which seafood and vegetables take pride of place. Each dish is a finely tuned score of intelligent contrast and harmony, while sauces and jus add a welcome gutsy kick greatly appreciated by discerning foodies. Examples include dressed spider crab, flanked by a tartlet of crab jus and green peas or parboiled green asparagus, sorrel and primeur caviar. Jordan Pottier, a particularly attentive maître d’, knows his brother’s menu inside out.