It's 11 pm, and the temperature in Nîmes' city center, scorched by the heatwave, is only just starting to become bearable. Behind the Carré d'Art, the city's contemporary art museum, François-Xavier Durieu is getting ready to close up shop. Two years ago, he and his wife Emmanuelle created Textures, an odd establishment halfway between a second-hand shop, delicatessen and fine dining restaurant where customers can pick up loose tea, ceramics, cookery books and unusual dishes combining many different influences. The owner improvises mosaic plates where cuttlefish mingle with roasted eggplants, watermelons are shaken with a little balsamic vinegar and fig-flavored brandades. The plate combines organic vegetables and local fish for less than €20.

Textures' unique formula and family atmosphere have attracted a host of customers who have become friends. That evening, Durieu didn't close the door of his restaurant at 11 pm as planned. "Good evening, guys. Not too hot?" he asked a couple of regulars who dropped by to say hello. The owner spontaneously pulled out a bench and a bistro table on the sidewalk and paid for a round of natural wine while the discussion turned to Nîmes' booming culinary scene.

"I grew up here, but I hesitated to come back," said the chef. "After working in London and then Lyon, I was afraid I'd get bored. The way I remember it, the restaurant scene remained stuck on fairly classic offers. I had it all wrong. We're going through a shift: The people of Nîmes and its new residents – many Parisians who came after the lockdown – want to try something new."

The Gard prefecture (the French department in which Nîmes is located) has been receiving praise from all over the world. In January, the New York Times, enticed by its gourmet addresses, made it the only "must-visit" French city – out of 52 destinations. In March, the Michelin Guide awarded a star to Rouge, a gourmet restaurant run by Benin-born chef Georgiana Viou, bringing to five the number of Michelin-starred establishments in and around the town. A fine score for a city of 150,000 too often boiled down to its Roman-era stones and ferias.

"There's a momentum," confirmed Viou. "Nîmes is opening up to the world, and I'm proof of it. I was quickly accepted, and people were even insisting that I move from Marseille. And now I have!" In its two years, Rouge's beautiful tree-lined inner courtyard has lost none of its magic, and the chef's mixed dishes – combining the cuisine from her native Benin and the Mediterranean – have become even more refined.

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