BAIETA IS MEDITERRANEAN CUISINE THAT LINGERS LIKE A SOFT KISS

words by FRANCESCO PIZZUTI

In the sea of restaurants Paris has to offer, Baieta refuses to blend in, but stands out with quiet confidence; that confidence that only comes with true rigor, technique, and a great dose of love for the art of gastronomy. Baieta is playful like a preserved memory that isn’t stuck but constantly reimagined and felt again, yet with the quality that only a Michelin-starred restaurant can achieve. Dining here is an experience, one filtered through sunlight, olive oil, and the precision of Chef Julia Sedefdjian’s Mediterranean upbringing.

all images credits ROCH DEBACHE

From the first gesture, a warm focaccia dipped generously into organic olive oil, Baieta sets its tone: generous, tactile, and deeply personal. The menu unfolds as a sequence of impressions with the “Petites Cagades”, playful in name and refined in execution, explaining the restaurant’s small and expressive register.

Sedefdjian’s cuisine is anchored in her native Nice, but translated through the discipline of haute gastronomy. Her reinterpretation of bouillabaisse, the “Bouillabaieta”, is emblematic. Served in stages, it deconstructs the Provençal classic into a journey of flavours and textures through perfectly cooked fish, a concentrated jus, crisp melba toast with rouille, and a final note of octopus and herbs. Nostalgic yet exciting, it never loses sight of its origin.

Elsewhere, pork belly arrives incredibly tender, lifted by apricot and cabbage; duck is paired with figs and chanterelles in a composition that feels like it came together naturally, like it was intended to be. Even at its most technical, flavours remain clean, legible, and anchored in seasonality.

What defines Baieta, ultimately, is its balance between playfullness and rigor, between memory and refinement. It’s a restaurant that lingers, like the Niçois name suggests, like a baieta — a small kiss, soft but lasting.