The Monte-Carlo Festival des Etoilés 2025 celebrated its fifth anniversary amidst a sea of stars
The Monte-Carlo Festival des Etoilés, now a must-attend event on the Monegasque calendar
The event is now firmly established in the calendar: for the past five years, the Monte-Carlo Festival des Etoilés has celebrated haute cuisine and the expertise of the chefs at Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer, who have, over time, established Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer as a leading gastronomic destination in Europe. Following a programme of four-handed dinners held throughout the year in the Resort’s Michelin-starred restaurants, the festival concluded, as is tradition, with a grand gala evening bringing together all the Group’s Michelin-starred chefs, accompanied by their teams.
This year’s festival kicked off on 10 April at Le Grill, with Dominique Lory hosting Pierre Gagnaire. On 20 June, Alain Ducasse and Emmanuel Pilon welcomed Albert Adrià to Louis XV-Alain Ducasse***. On 13 July, Yannick Alléno joined forces with Davide Oldani at Pavyllon Monte-Carlo*. On 18 July, Marcel Ravin and Anne-Sophie Pic presented their four-handed dinner at Blue Bay Marcel Ravin**. This anniversary edition, marked by the arrival of three new stars, was further enhanced by a dinner at L’Abysse Monte-Carlo**, on 27 April with chef Hirotaka Wada, invited by Yannick Alléno, followed by a dinner at Elsa* on 23 September, with chef Florent Pietravalle, invited by Marcel Ravin and Domenico D’Antonio.
It was thus with its now ten Michelin stars that the world’s most star-studded resort brought its 2025 festival to a close in the Salle des Etoiles at the Sporting Monte-Carlo. For fifty years, this legendary venue has hosted the Principality’s finest events and its biggest stars. A perfect venue for this Gala. Following an opening address by Stéphane Valeri, Deputy Chairman of Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer, the evening was hosted by Sophie Menut-Yovanovitch, editor-in-chief of the gastronomic magazine *Cuisine & Vins de France* and presenter of the television programme “ça roule en cuisine”, who was also present last year, and by Jennifer Galap, a columnist for TV Nova 19, presenter for Radio Tropiques and presenter for the France Télévisions group.
A ten-star dinner, with music and dancing
After being welcomed by hostesses in traditional dress by Vittorio Piccininni and the Balleto Dance troupe, the guests made their way to the Salle des Etoiles for a seven-course dinner of the highest calibre:
Starter – Blue Bay Marcel Ravin**
Coconut blancmange, tapioca, sweet potato, Péyi redcurrant
Pinard Brothers – Sancerre Blanc (La Moussière)
Cold starter – Le Grill*
Marinated and grilled gilthead seabream, bottarga and quince, delicate jelly
Pinard Brothers – Sancerre Blanc (La Moussière)
Hot starter – L’Abysse Monte-Carlo**
Princess-style dish, scallop meat with white truffle
Sake or White Burgundy
Fish – Elsa*
Mediterranean deep-sea catch, turnip greens, small spelt with seaweed, XO sauce
White Burgundy
Vegetarian – Le Louis XV – Alain Ducasse at the Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo***
Porcini mushrooms, chestnuts, beeswax
Azienda Massolino – Barolo
Meat – Pavyllon Monte-Carlo, a restaurant by Yannick Alléno at the Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo*
Young chicken with lobster butter, sea-salted scrambled eggs, Vin Jaune sauce
Bordeaux grand cru
Dessert – Cedric Grolet Monte-Carlo
XXL Saint Honoré
Château Sigalas Rabaud 2011
1er Grand Cru Classé de Sauternes
Chocolates – Marcel Ravin, Yannick Alléno and Alain Ducasse
It was from a giant Pass Live set up in front of the stage that the chefs finalised their dishes live, alongside their teams. Concentration was at its peak, as was camaraderie, with other chefs lending a hand. As soon as the dishes were finished, they were handled with flair by the Sporting team, moving like a ballet in the Salle des Etoiles. This magnificent room had been transformed for the occasion into an immersive space within the chefs’ world.
Beauty and wonder were also on stage throughout the evening, notably featuring the magnificent children’s choir from the International School of Monaco, the dancer Desislava Kancheva and the dance duo Marc Emmanuel Zanoli and Claire Teyssière, before the presentation of Cedric Grolet’s XXL Saint Honoré. After dinner, it was time to dance to the wild rhythms of the group Divas on the Floor.
This evening is special, as it marks the fifth anniversary of this 100% SBM event, which celebrates one of our great areas of expertise – the one that perhaps best embodies the notions of pleasure, conviviality and sharing: gastronomy. Since its inception in 2021, our Festival des Etoilés has come a long way and has accompanied our ascent to an even more star-studded sky. From seven, we have gone from seven to ten stars this year, with new chefs joining us and new restaurants opening, making Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer the most star-studded resort in the world.
The date is already set for 2026 for the 6th edition of the Monte-Carlo Festival des Etoilés.