Rosemarie is a Mediterranean cantine tucked into the heart of Montpellier's Saint-Roch district. Everything here is designed to make you feel at home: a large shaded terrace, generous homemade dishes, and fresh, local produce full of sunshine. At lunchtime, the kitchen turns out simple, savoury cooking; come evening, it's all about colourful plates shared among friends over a good glass of wine. The spirit is relaxed and convivial — you don't necessarily need to book, and there's always a spot kept for you in the sun.
The menu reads like a tour of the sunny south, built around tapas and small plates that change with the seasons. Recent creations on the petites assiettes side include chickpea houmous with za'atar and crispy chickpeas, focaccia with Greek-style olives and rosemary, fish croquettes with olives, dill, and spiced mayo, socca fritta with aïoli, a trout tartare with avocado and grapefruit, burrata with broccoli pesto and toasted almonds, courgette tzatziki, labneh with kalamata olives and pistachio, and gratinated razor clams in citrus butter. Among the larger plats you'll find peppered beef carpaccio with spinach shoots and parmesan, Sète-style calamari with Camargue red rice and olives, veal tartare in the spirit of a vitello tonnato, roasted aubergine with tapenade and a little spelt salad, roasted squid tentacle with caponata and stracciatella, roast pork filet mignon with smoked paprika and BBQ sauce, and a beef persillé with smoked marrow jus. There are always vegetarian and vegan options too, plus sides like Camargue red rice, house fries with rosemary and Camargue salt, and caponata.
To finish, the homemade desserts lean indulgent — a raspberry entremet with speculoos biscuit, pecan, pistachio, and peanut brownies with spiced dark chocolate, or a verbena panna cotta with strawberry-thyme coulis and peanut crumble — alongside fleur-de-lait Italian-style ice creams that nod playfully to local sweets, from Calissons d'Aix and salted-caramel chouchous to Zézettes de Sète and Oreillettes de Montpellier. With its shaded terrace, its generous, sun-soaked cooking, and its easygoing welcome, Rosemarie is a warm and colourful spot to settle in and taste the Mediterranean right in the centre of Montpellier.