Etienne Singher, a young confectioner from Saint-Moritz opened the Miremont tearoom and patisserie in Biarritz in 1872.  Almost one and a half centuries later, we enjoyed the lunch plat du jour on the second floor of this patisserie-restaurant, looking out at the lighthouse and the surfers launching off 2 metre waves.

Biarritz, long the summer diamond of Europe’s royal and rich, has seen the likes of King Edward VII of Britain, King Alphonso XIII of Spain, Charlie Chaplain, and many others, who surely passed through Miremont’s doors to savour the array of pastries and sweets behind the counter or to sip a tea on the back terrace.  Of its upper-crust clientele around the turn of the century, Edmond Rostand, a French poet and dramatist, said, “At teatime, there are at Miremont fewer pastries than Queens and fewer rum babas than Grand Dukes.”

There is an almost magical cosy feeling to this place, and the pink wallpaper, chandeliers and list of exotic teas made my daughter feel like she was in a princess’s tea room.  Between the croissants, tarts, and ice creams and the assortment of chocolates, ganaches, and marzipans—you will find Miremont irresistible.

Words by Jonathan McCallum

Photos by Anna Medearis

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