La Mercerie

A decor that mixes distressed walls with minimalist industrial-style lighting and sleek designer chairs is your first clue that this neobistro and wine bar in Marseille's emerging Noailles neighborhood is impossibly hip. British chef Harry Cummins, lately of Paris's gastronomic mecca Frenchie, uses local, seasonal ingredients to craft subtle, imaginative dishes that are highly satisfying to all yet also sensitive to the needs of vegetarians and those with food allergies. The three-course lunch menu (€35) and the five-course dinner menu (€62), served inside or on the secluded outdoor terrace, are good introductions.

London chef Harry Cummins and Montreal-born sommelier Laura Vidal met while working at Frenchie in Paris in 2012, when pop-ups were just coming on the scene in the French capital. A few years later, they were in the thick of it, hosting longer pop-up residencies and takeovers at restaurants all over the city. With partner Julia Mitton, they launched Paris Popup, an organisation empowering young entrepreneurs to create and grow in the French restaurant industry.

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This vitality explains why the team (chef Harry Cummins, sommelière Laura Vidal and Julia Mitton) behind La Mercerie, which is possibly the most popular bistro in Marseille, joined up with chef Valentin Raffali (who previously worked at La Mercerie and the team’s other restaurant Chardon, in Arles) to open this new bistrot à vin in the city’s popular Cours Julien district. Raffali, a native of Marseille, has an instinct for the type of edgy modern comfort-food the locals love, which is why his short but tantalising trans-Mediterranean menu evolves constantly. Standout small plates on a recent visit included calf’s head croquettes with chipotle mayonnaise, miniature pizzettes, tomatoes roasted with XO sauce, and marinated anchovies with calcots (grilled Catalan onions).

They make a pilgrimage to the Notre-Dame de la Garde Basilica for the nautical ex-votos, marvelous mosaics, and sweeping views from Marseille’s highest point. At her feet, the now hipster hillside village of Vauban is peppered with a popsicle shop, fromagerie, and one of the city’s best pies at la Bonne Mère (AKA the “Good Mother,” the church’s nickname.) Close to the train station, the Friche la Belle du Mai, a tobacco factory turned cultural space, has boosted one of Marseille’s poorest neighborhoods; the nearby Couvent Levat, a convent-turned-art collective opened in 2018, also adds to the creative mix. Across town, Le Corbusier’s Unité d’Habitation apartment complex and the Stade Velodrome are close in proximity but architecturally distant.

Headed up by British chef Harry Cummins, La Mercerie is one of the restaurants leading the way in Marseille’s gastronomic revival. Whilst Cummins’ style is hard to define and has evolved since the restaurant opened, the chef is known for championing local Provençal produce (even if it’s served up in a very non-Provençal way) and his delicious homemade pasta. By night, its five-course tasting menu takes you on a journey through Harry’s creative cooking, and by day it’s a prix fixe menu (which always includes a veggie option) priced at €25 (£22) for one course, €35 (£30) for two, or €38 (£33) for three.

This influx of talent has put the city on the map, and it’s sure to continue gaining momentum since the reality is that Marseille has always been very much underestimated in every way by most French people and the rest of the world.” Accomplished Quebecoise sommelier Laura Vidal co-owns La Mercerie, one of Marseille’s most popular modern bistros, with English chef Harry Cummins. She says moving to Marseille was a deliberate choice. “We’d already lived in Paris, and we’d been considering a move to Barcelona when we fell in love with Marseille,” she says.

Récompensé cette année par Le Fooding, avec le prix du meilleur sophistroquet de 2019, La Mercerie fait partie des bonnes adresses food à connaître à Marseille. Mené par Laura Vidal (The Paris Popup), et Julia Mitton, on retrouve aux fourneaux le chef Harry Cummins (ancien de chez Frenchie) plus inspiré que jamais. Mettant un point d'honneur à n'utiliser que des produits frais et de saisons, on y déguste des salades de poulpes aux tomates anciennes, des concombres en granité, du maquereau grillé servi avec des œufs de poisson...

As with its cultural landmarks and coast-side escapades, Marseille has established its position on the gourmet food map as a must-visit destination for food lovers. From traditional seafood dishes to contemporary fusions, each cobblestoned road seemingly leads the way to new restaurants on every corner. On a trip to the vibrant district of Noailles, a mere stone’s throw away from the old port, La Mercerie is a must-visit restaurant favoured by locals and tourists alike, including Skadhauge.

If one restaurant can be credited with leading Marseille’s gastronomic rise, it’s La Mercerie. British head chef Harry Cummins says his cuisine is hard to define – his CV includes a mix of restaurants from Grégory Marchand’s Frenchie to a short patisserie stint at Celler de Can Roca – but is always driven by the seasons and local Provençal produce. The homemade pasta is a particular highlight, a result of Cummin’s time in the kitchens of Zafferano in London.

When Alexandre Mazzia is pressed for time but still wants to eat well, he has lunch at La Mercerie, a small gourmet bistro tucked away in the Noailles district. The place was first opened by Julia Sammut, owner of the grocery-cellar-table d'hôte L'Idéal, is now animated daily by Quebec sommelier Laura Vidal, English cook Harry Cummins and Canadian manager Julia Mitton. On the menu: elegant dishes made from local products served with natural wines.

One of the most exciting meals was at La Mercerie, where Englishman Harry Cummins and Canadian sommelier Laura Vidal are plying their craft. Both veterans of Frenchie in Paris, they came to Marseille 7 years ago, fell in love with the city and have not looked back. Our meal started with the “taco” above, went on to the most extraordinary beet preparation, an intense porcini porridge and then rare squab surrounded by a kind of pate of its innards.

This restaurant, La Mercerie, is led by British-born chef Harry Cummins and his young team who serve bold yet simple dishes made from local products. The restaurant offers a relaxed atmosphere and a diverse wine list curated by the passionate sommelier, Laura Vidal. With a menu that changes regularly based on product availability and freshness, La Mercerie offers a unique dining experience with options like their surprise 5-course "Feed Me" menu.

La Mercerie restaurant Marseille [Photo courtesy of www.lamerceriemarseille.com]I would also like to give a shout out to a restaurant which I think will be the next big thing in Marseille. La Mercerie is run by a trio of foodies that arrived in Marseille by way of Paris, from England and Canada. The trio all met in Paris and together they founded the award-winning Paris Pop-up restaurant.

You can’t miss a dinner at la Mercerie if you are heading to Marseille. A 5 service dinner with 5 tasteful dishes, served in refined ceramics made by local artists Franca Ateliers. At la Mercerie, the kitchen is open and you can see the whole team of chef cooking right under your eyes.

There is the sublime contemporary seafood cuisine at Le Petit Nice, from Michelin three-star chef Gérald Passedat, as well as Alexandre Mazzia’s Restaurant AM and the just-opened and in-demand La Mercerie, in the charming Noailles quarter.