Anne Newman-Hall

Christmas Eve dinner with the family and we’re at a buffet in a bowling alley that’s harder to book than most Michelin restaurants. Les Grands Buffets in Narbonne, France, shares a parking lot with a bowling alley and swimming pool, but this buffet received 2.3 million booking requests last year so you need to book months in advance. The inside is really cool, it’s like a 19th century palace serving 150 Auguste Escoffier recipes all unlimited, with a lobster cascade, 111 different cheeses (Guinness World Record), 9 types of foie gras, and 50 desserts made by 7 pastry chefs. €66 per person with wine at producer prices, and you are greeted like royalty. Also The New Yorker called it “the hottest restaurant in France.” The place is packed with French and Spanish families on Christmas Eve and you can see why people treat this as somewhere to celebrate something special. Have a blessed Christmas!