An Afternoon with Cedric Grolet in the Hôtel de Paris Patio
Afternoon tea has never lacked admirers in Monaco, yet few settings lend the ritual such a sense of occasion as the patio of the Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo. A few steps from Casino Square, Cedric Grolet Monte-Carlo has turned a corner of the palace into the Principality’s most talked-about address for luxury teatime.
The French pastry chef, named World’s Best Pastry Chef by the World’s 50 Best in 2018, opened his tea room and boutique on 30 July 2025 and became Executive Pastry Chef of the hotel. For anyone who takes the afternoon hour seriously, it deserves a place in the diary.
A Sweet New Chapter at the Hôtel de Paris
The arrival of Cedric Grolet in Monaco felt like a natural meeting of two reputations. Grolet built his name in Paris, then in London, Saint-Tropez and Singapore. The Hôtel de Paris belongs to Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer (SBM), the group behind many of the resort’s best-known addresses. The partnership goes beyond the tea room, since Grolet also signs the desserts across the hotel’s dining venues, with the exception of Le Louis XV, Alain Ducasse. The salon itself includes a 200 square metre indoor space that opens onto the patio, designed by the chef with SBM’s construction and heritage teams.
A Setting Made for Slowing Down
In my view, tea time depends on setting more than on any single pastry. A patio set back from the bustle of the square gives the afternoon a slower tempo, and the architecture of the Hôtel de Paris does much of the work. Guests arrive from Avenue des Beaux-Arts and are welcomed into a space that feels removed from the traffic outside.
The Art of the Mini Collection
The tea time at Cedric Grolet Monte-Carlo centres on the chef’s full collection served in mini format, accompanied by savoury creations that follow the seasons. Grolet is best known for his trompe-l’oeil pastries, in which a citrus fruit or a hazelnut turns out to be a carefully engineered dessert. The smaller scale is, to my mind, the most intelligent decision on the menu. It allows a table to explore several signatures without the weight of a full-size dessert, and it suits the shared, unhurried nature of tea. The house describes the setting as a Fruits and Flowers universe, an apt phrase for a chef who treats fruit as sculpture.
Practical Notes for a Perfect Afternoon
The tea room is located in the patio of the Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, Avenue des Beaux-Arts, and is open daily. According to the chef’s website, service runs from 9:30 to 17:30, and a reservation is recommended. Tables are booked through Monte-Carlo SBM. It is sensible to confirm hours and menus when booking, as seasonal offers change.
Tea Time in a Town of Schedules
Monaco is a place of schedules, launches and appointments, and luxury here is often measured in spectacle. What Cedric Grolet offers instead is closer to time itself: a quiet table, a plate of small and beautifully made things, and no reason to hurry. Hotels across the Riviera are investing more in pastry as a signature, and the Hôtel de Paris has made a confident case for it. The result is less a dessert stop than a considered way to spend an afternoon, which may be the most modern form of luxury Monte-Carlo can offer.
by Sara Moradi
