By the time he was six, Raymond Blanc was an expert hunter-gatherer. With knowledge and local maps passed down from his father, he knew when and where to harvest berries, wild asparagus, mushrooms, frogs and snails, and had a deep understanding of his region.

That passion for local, seasonal produce has become one of his trademarks as the two-Michelin-starred master chef and owner of Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons. The kitchen gardens of Britain’s foremost restaurant with rooms alone produce 90 types of vegetables and more than 70 varieties of herbs.

We asked him to tell us about his favourite “local” restaurants; from here to Thailand, these are the places that, he believes, exemplify their own regional specialities.

LOUIS XV, Monaco
This is a posh one, I know, but everyone should save up their money and eat here once. Inside, it is like a palace, full of gilt mirrors, ornate gold, huge flower displays and high ceilings. The service is immaculate and the staff’s knowledge of the local Provençal food is impeccable. You feel like a king, yet the atmosphere isn’t stuffy. You can relax and enjoy the opulence. I am a huge fan of Alain Ducasse, and I loved every minute of my meal there, which included simple and locally sourced delicacies such as flash-fried ceps, and a salad with walnuts and raw vegetables, served with a tapenade. Such simplicity is an art. For me, those ingredients show that the essence of good food is reconnecting to the soil around you and finding the best varieties and flavours that will grow there. It shouldn’t just be about the fastest- and biggest-growing carrots or apples, as it has become in the supermarkets.

Details: Place du Casino; 00 377-98 06 88 64, www.alain-ducasse.com; gastronomic menu £157, without wine.

Sleep over: the Louis XV is part of the five-star Hôtel de Paris (98 06 30 16, www.montecarloresort.com), which has standard rooms from £278, though you’ll pay significantly more if you want a nice view.

CAN FABES, near Barcelona
A fabulous Relais Gourmand restaurant. The dishes are quite rustic here. They use seasonal foods to the letter: tomatoes, peppers, walnuts and the wonderful charcuterie of the Catalan region. The one I really remember was the tripe, from a pig – it was delicious, just like my mother would have made.

Santi Santamaria is a wonderful man who has a deep love of what he does and is involved in the food he serves.

Details: Sant Joan 6, Sant Celoni; 00 34-93 867 2851, www.racocanfabes.com; about £95 a head.

Sleep over: Santi’s gourmet retreat now has five guestrooms; doubles £170, room-only. Book on 00800 2000 0002.

LE VIN ET L’ASSIETTE, Besançon
This wonderful restaurant is in my home town, Besançon, in a 15th-century building on a very old street. I love the name, the idea of the wine and the plate, because it is honest and simple. It is run by Bernard Leroy and his whole family – his son is in the kitchen and his wife is in the front of house. The wine cellars are amazing, deep and vaulted, well stocked with wines from the famous surrounding regions of Burgundy and Arbois, as well as fantastic local wines you will never have heard of. You can go down into the cellar, choose your wine and take it back to your table up in the restaurant. The food is out of this world, and always changing according to what is available at that time of year. When you sit there with the pâté de campagne, a big chunk of crusty bread and a glass of wine, you feel that life is really good.

Details: 97 Rue Battant; 00 33-3 81 81 48 18, www.levin-et-lassiette.com; mains from £10.

Sleep over: try the charming 18th-century Hôtel Charles Quint (03 81 82 05 49, www.hotel-charlesquint.com; doubles from £59, room-only), in the historic district, near the cathedral.

QUARTIER VERT, Bristol
Barny Haughton is a purist. He has strong links with the Soil Association and the Slow Food movement, and he has for a long time been pushing producers to grow organic food. His restaurant is bistro-style, and the food is all organic. I had a divine roasted onion with bacon when I was there – the flavours were sweet and melting. The atmosphere is friendly and simple, and the food is rustic and wholesome. It’s a really good example of how the best ingredients make the best food.

Details: 85 Whiteladies Road, Clifton; 0117 973 4482, www.quartiervert.co.uk; mains from about £10.

Sleep over: Bristol is blessed with a Hotel du Vin (0117 925 5577, www.hotelduvin.com; doubles from £145), knocked out of a string of 18th-century sugar warehouses down on the waterfront.

GIDLEIGH PARK, Devon
The problem in this country’s 1½ climate zones (France has 12) is, what do you do in the winter? Choice is limited. But Gidleigh Park’s young chef, Michael Caines, has done a lot to overcome these problems. The setting of his hotel is idyllic, like pixieland. You have to go down A-roads, then Broads, then miles down a single-track lane until you cross the North Teign River and arrive at this elegant, 24-bedroom country-house hotel. It’s worth the drive. Michael serves fish from the southwest coast, such as slow-poached Cornish sea bass, and his mussels and scallops have been diver-caught in the River Exe, which means huge nets weren’t used to kill other sea life, and the smaller scallops are left so that they can reproduce.

Details: 01647 432367, www.gidleigh.com; the tasting menu costs £85pp.

Sleep over: in one of those 24 rooms, of course. Doubles start at £440, half-board.

PIERRE GAGNAIRE, Paris
Pierre takes seasonality and local food so seriously that he has a large network of master gardeners and butchers, surrounding Paris, who supply his kitchen with the best produce available. He is a friend of mine, and he is always an excellent host. I once went there for dinner and, 24 courses later, I left at 1.30am. I had to get up at 4.30am, but I felt fine when I woke up, because the food is fresh and clean. This is how a good gastronomic experience should leave you feeling – not bloated and heavy.

Details: 6 Rue Balzac; 00 33-1 58 36 12 50; evening tasting menu from £160, without wine.

Sleep over: the restaurant belongs to the Hôtel Balzac (01 44 35 18 00, www.hotelbalzac.com), which has ornate rooms at ornate prices – from £328, room-only.

CHIVA-SOM, Thailand
My one truly exotic recommendation. The setting for this restaurant is a luxury health spa, so it goes without saying that the head chef, Paisarn Cheewinsiriwat, has an understanding of ayurvedic medicine as well as nutrition and healthy eating. He also loves and understands locality and seasonality. The restaurant has its own organic gardens, where mangoes and other fruits and vegetables are grown, and sources the best-quality local meat and fish. I last went there in July, and the food blew me away. I particularly remember a lo-mein soup, with shrimps and seafood, and a beef salad with ginger. I was so impressed with Paisarn’s food that I have invited him to the Manoir to recreate some of his dishes using our own Southeast Asian garden. Yes, believe it or not, it is possible to grow lemon grass and ginger in Oxfordshire.

Sleep over: three-day retreats with meals start at £770pp. ITC Classics (01244 355527, www.itcclassics.co.uk) has seven nights, full-board, for £2,485pp, based on two sharing an ocean-view room.

— Raymond Blanc talked to Harriet Perry

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