La Tantra/Le Loft

Description:

• An enduring favorite on the city's dine-then-dance circuit is this duplex-designed restaurant and disco on a side street that runs directly into La Croisette. On the street level, you'll find a Tao-inspired dining room, artfully simple and outfitted in a way that, if it wasn't filled with chattering and gossiping diners, might inspire meditation or a yoga class. The menu focuses on a French adaptation of Asian cuisine, with lots of sushi; tempura that includes a succulent combination of deep-fried banana slices, zucchini flowers, shrimp, and lobster; a Japanese-style steak of Kobe beef marinated in teriyaki, soy, and garlic; and deep-fried noodles dotted with chunks of shrimp and lobster. Be warned in advance that the 9pm seating is relatively calm; the 11pm seating is more linked to the disco madness going on upstairs. There, in a venue lined with plush sofas and exposed stone, you'll witness all the gyrations and mating games of a scantily clad crowd of hipsters from across the wide, wide range of social types inhabiting Cannes.

• © Frommer's 2012