La Garence

Between Reims and Épernay, this luxury hotel, set in a sort of modern-day amphitheatre built out of light-coloured stone, hugs the hillsides of Champagne. The interior celebrates the wine and the gilded ceiling sports a huge chandelier with 36 blown-glass orbs (bubbles). There is also a nod to Napoleon Bonaparte, said to have stopped off here when it was a coaching inn. The perfect foil to high-flying haute cuisine in tune with the seasons and founded on traditions that traverse the annals of French cookery, further enhanced by a crack front-of-house team. The wine cellar is, of course, well s

At the foot of the Montagne de Reims and on the road to Épernay, this imposing inn unabashedly brandishes its opulent style. Come evening, the elegant dining space done out in pale wood takes on a romantic air – the perfect setting for fine classic French cuisine delivered by chefs Dominique Giraudeau (who shone for many years in the kitchens of Gérard Boyer at Les Crayères) and his associate, Pascal Champion. On the menu, top-notch produce, from John Dory to free-range milk-fed veal, as well as game, lobster and truffles.

The restaurant specialises in cooking top-drawer produce over a wood fire: whole sea bass with fennel, rib of beef, pluma de pata negra, venison with a peppery sauce poivrade – all dishes are the handiwork of a cheerful chef of Lyon origins. The atmosphere is friendly and buzzy and, come summertime, the garden is bliss.