Delicious, fresh meal. Excellent service in a beautiful space. Very reasonably priced. We had a…read moredelicious, affordable lunch here.

My associates and I went there last night for dinner and will definitely be returning. The quality…read moreof the food was fantastic with perfect serving sized. I had the Aubergine appetizer and Avignon stew and both were great. My associates had the steak, cod fish and the fish special. All of us were very pleased with our meals ... no speaking, just eating!!! The service was fantastic with a very attentive staff, not just waiter or waitress for the table, but the entire team took care of every table. The ambiance was relaxing and the noise level was very low. Great dining experience! Suggest making reservations as they opened at 1915 and every table was full by 1930!!

Excellent service. Did not feel rushed. Lovely wine selection. The food was prepared with…read moredevotion, and a master of the culinary craft. I am celiaque, and the staff was knowledgeable and accommodated via modification where needed. The complexity and creativity in our meals was very appreciated. Merci!

Avenio We wanted to…read morehave a dinner outdoors but at the same time avoid the large restaurants that focus on meals designed for tourists. Our hotel recommended Avenio as a good choice for a nicer meal in Avignon. We made a reservation as the hotel's outdoor seating area is quite limited. The weather was perfect for an outdoor dinner. We decided to order main courses from the "Saison Plat" menu and deserts. My wife ordered the lamb and I ordered the fish. We shared a bottle of wine from the region. The fish was nicely prepared. It was cooked properly. My wife's lamb was also well prepared. The deserts are over the top. One of the highlights of the meal. Avenio is a nice choice for a finer dinner in Avignon.

Loved this place! The husband/wife duo make a great team. He is the chef - and he makes it a point…read moreto come around the restaurant several times throughout the meal. She is the front of the house, and is extremely friendly and accommodating. The food was delicious and not what I'd consider overpriced by any means. Definitely make a reservation though - I don't think they take many walk ins. Menu options are pre-fix or a la carte.

I never write reviews and, well, given my dining experience at La Cuisine du Dimanche, I had to…read moremake a point of changing that. My family and I stumbled upon this restaurant and almost walked past it since there were not many people dining there on that given evening. But, as we read the menu closer, we saw that the food was local and all ingredients are fresh and organic. This inspired us to give it a shot. Honestly, we did not have high expectations, we were simply hungry and just wanted to rest after a long day of walking and exploring. To say that this was one of the most unexpected highlights of our trip is an understatement. The food was outstanding, gourmet, extraordinary! The ingredients were fresh, everything was seasoned to perfection, all while maintaining a very clean, light feel (which is rare for French food). A couple of us ordered the Bouillabaise and my beloved ordered the lasagna. Every bite was accompanied by "oh my God!!!" Everything from the wine to the meal to the dessert kept getting better and better. My words could never do the food justice. Yet, I had to write a review to share this best kept secret with others who will be traveling through Avignon. It was an absolutely divine dining experience and goes downs as one of the best meals I have ever had (and I have eaten in some of the finest). I very much look forward to going back. If you are headed to Avignon, do yourself a favor and enjoy a meal here. You and your taste buds will be very glad that you did.

I cannot speak highly enough of L'Essentiel, from their food, to their service, to the beautiful…read moredecor and table settings. Service is welcoming and accommodating for my poor attempt at culinary French terms. The Chef even came out to answer questions at three occasions. First up, a trio of amuse bouches called land and sea. I don't typically like foie gras but this was incredible. I would actually order this again if ever back in Avignon. The Parmesan biscuit was technically amazing, with such subtle flavor, crispy on the outside, and soft, light and creamy inside. The mushroom "egg roll" was crispy, flaky with great umami. The Jerusalem artichoke risotto was my absolute favorite; I'll likely dream of this dish and try to replicate the recipe. It's unlike anything I've had before, so creative, unique and insanely delicious. The artichokes were cooked perfectly , tender but still firm. The risotto was actually a thick, creamy foam, packed with bold creamy flavor and truffles on top. The sea bream was glistening with the crispiest skin, along with carrots and a silky champagne sauce. The veal was so tender with the most delightful sweet onion tart. The tart was surprisingly good with the best onions I've ever had. Kudos to the chef for shopping the market everyday for the freshest and highest quality products! The scallops were sliced beautifully and were balanced so well with the acidity of raspberries and pomegranates. We started out with the strongest amuse bouches, and Chef didn't disappoint from there, maintaining and exceeding our palette's expectations. Chef Mohamad deserves a Michelin rank!!

KenScale: 8.0/10…read more It's not often a restaurant boldly comes up with a name "essential". When I was looking up different restaurant options during our stay in Avignon, I initially chuckled at the name and figured why not give a chance at the place. My wife Jun and I were coming back from a full-day wine tasting tour with a rather big lunch, so we were not completely starving when we entered L'Essentiel's lovely courtyard. Still, we ended up having a very solid meal here, as all the dishes we ordered had something nice to say about. You can go with either one of the tasting menu options or simply go a la carte at L'Essentiel. Given that we weren't terribly hungry, Jun and I opted for the latter and ordered one appetizer, two main dishes and a dessert to share together. I don't know why we saw tomato gazpacho only just now near the tail end of our two-week honeymoon/summer vacation; in any event, the one that the kitchen put together was quite refreshing, perfect for a summer appetizer with mozzarella di buffalo cheese in the middle. While cod with orange sauce infused into jasmine and creamy polenta looked pedestrian in plating, there is no denying that the fish was expertly cooked with ideal temperature and texture. I was initially worried that the fried foie gras accompanying the beef Rossini filet might simply overpower the meat with too much richness, but the server assured that won't be the case. Listening to her turned out to be a smart idea because the foie gras had a surprisingly delicate side to it that complemented the beef filet quite well. With roasted potatoes on the side, the filet was a winner dish. For dessert, a rather artful display of chocolate ganache and crispy peanut on top of chocolate dulce emulsion (with black chocolate ice cream submerged below) was as delicious as it looked. I secured a reservation at L'Essential through my credit card concierge service so I don't know how difficult it is to get a table at the restaurant; if you want to go for al fresco dining in the summer season at the courtyard that makes you feel like you're eating inside a small but lovely palace, it does seem like a good idea to book in advance. There is a multi-page wine list focusing on the wines from the region; we ordered a bottle of nice vacqueyras that worked well with the dishes we had ordered. L'Essentiel is somewhere in the middle in terms of value proposition; it is not as pricey or fancy as three Michelin-star haute cuisine establishments but it certainly is more refined than an everyday bistro, which also means it works on a more variety of different occasions. If you are staying in Avignon and feel like you want to have an elegant meal without breaking the bank, L'Essential is a good option to consider.

Excellent food and service…read more Great ambiance and reasonable prices No complaints at all

This was maybe our best meal here. They didn't open until 6:30 but we arrived at 6 and they let us…read moresit inside until they were ready. Great food and service. I couldn't decide on a wine so our server was very helpful in picking one for me given what we ordered and let me try 3 of them before confirming one. On food, we loved the cheeses, charcuterie, escargots (though they were smaller than we are used to), and fries. The foie gras, sea breem with mussels, and shrimp were also good. Definitely recommend!

Some of the most delicious food we've enjoyed in all of France - this tiny hidden gem is a MUST if…read moreyou are in Avignon. No-frills setting but every bite was superb and very affordable. Owner/chef speaks English and is kind and accommodating.

Our tour stopped in Avignon for two hours and we decided to have lunch during our time there…read more Thanks to the Yelp community found excellent recommendations for EAT. Per other reviewers, it is not far from the main square and in an alley off of a main commercial street. It has a modern and simple elegance and they featured a daily lunch special and regular starters, mains and desserts. It was a limited menu yet all the options were compelling it was hard to choose. My wife had the daily special of a white fish and potatoes in a bouillabaisse broth. It was amazing with notes of cinnamon and coriander. I had the chuck roast with artichokes and carrots. It was comforting and reminded me of a stew my grandmother used to make. The wine options were limited as they were all house options yet the red paired well with my entree. We did not have dessert but the options sounded delicious (chocolate mousse with caramelized peanuts, basil crème brûlée,etc.) The owner was helpful and professional. We would go back in a heartbeat and highly recommend. The meal further endeared us to the charming city of Avignon.

#1 in Avignon on trip advisor and for a reason. Just what you want. Husband and wife team run…read moreplace. Great food but not overpriced because of the great location. Each course was tremendous. Wonderful local wine list. Service terrific. The duck dish is the one most people post and I thought it was a delicious as the pictures appeared. The risotto was fabulous and all of the desserts were terrific.

This place is AMAZING!!! If you are in Avignon, this is a MUST TRY. It might have just become my…read morefavorite restaurant. It is a small Husband+Wife restaurant, a very talented couple. It is a prefix menu, we chose the 4-course and it was very much enough food. I do want to go back and try the 6-course meal, just out of curiosity. I love how you get a taste of each, and how Pauline asks if you have any allergies or if there's something you prefer before your meal is being made. We loved every single course -- they were all presented very artistically, and the colors and flavors made it a true experience. I strongly recommend people not to miss out!

My wife and I visited this restaurant last October 2023. The service and the food were extremely…read moregood and very reasonable. I would definitely recommend

This is a very nice small restaurant with outside seating and English is spoken well. I was able…read moreto make reservations and we were sat upon our arrival. I ordered the summer Profiteroles, Tiscan cod and finished with the Pavlova sunrise. Each dish was perfect. The starter had such great flavor that I used the fresh bread on the table so that I could get every last drop. The fish was expertly prepared with the flavor of the cod dominating yet enhanced by all the other flavors on the plate. Dessert was insane, just the fact that decorum dictates that I not have two is the only reason I stopped. With one small and one large carafe of wine and one large bottle of Pellegrino we were just shy of €70. Worth every cent, I'm here for another 8-9 days so I will definitely be back.