If you are ready to get away from the tourist oriented places along the beach and try some real local cuisine, take a walk up Rue Longue to Palais des Princes, a small family-run restaurant in the heart of old Menton. The specialty of the house are the brochettes -- fish, meat, and/or vegetables cooked on a skewer, On a quiet Sunday night in May, we had the place to ourselves and the full attention of the owner-chef. Although there were three of us, the seafood menu for two was plenty of food and every bite was delicious. Roasted fish can be dry, but at Palais des Princes the "daurade" is stuffed with a creamy paste that keeps it moist and adds an exquisite flavor. The brochettes also featured zucchini flowers stuffed with a paste made from seaweed -- truly exceptional. After the brochettes, we had a cheese plate featuring five great local cheeses. The bread that came alongside was the best I have eaten in France, or anywhere else. Once we finished that we had no room for dessert, but the chef insisted we cap off the meal in a proper way, so he treated us to some of his homemade liquers and asked us to guess what they contained. We did pretty well, but I won't tell you what they were so you can have the fun of guessing for yourself. At 52 euros the menu for two is a bargain for food of this exceptional quality. We plan to return later in the week to try the meat brochettes. read more