Coquillages Brun

The clue is in the name. ‘Coquillages’ means ‘shellfish’, and the Brun family do it better than pretty much anyone else on the coast.

Then again, they should do. They’ve been at it for three generations. That’s why you might have trouble getting a table. The place doesn’t take reservations, so you’ll just have to stack up behind everyone else waiting.

I think you’ll consider it worthwhile. The restaurant – more of a brasserie, really – has no airs and graces. The terrace looks a little more stylish than the interior but that’s not saying much, and you’re not there for the décor, anyway. You’re there for the shellfish – and just about anything else edible that can be hauled from the deep.

Fun, and the sea-urchin.

Naturally, you might tackle one of those multi-storey platters of shelled items and have all the fun of discovering how to eat a sea-urchin. But the more straightforward dishes are ace, too. I have particularly fond memories of a sea-bass with fennel, and the mussels with cream take some beating. As does the fish soup.

None of this comes very cheap, but the best rarely does. So take your time and revel in it. If, on the other hand, you don’t have much time, nip into the restaurant’s Annexe – a bar-style operation where you might down a few oysters, or have a plat-du-jour (daily special dish) at the bar.