bargee2016 (bargee2016)

We spent two days in La Grande Motte with another couple, and having had a rather unpleasant meal at Entre Terre et Mer the first evening (see review) we decide... leer más We spent two days in La Grande Motte with another couple, and having had a rather unpleasant meal at Entre Terre et Mer the first evening (see review) we decided to venture further from our hotel. We decided to stick with local fishy menus and eventually fetched up outside the Grand Bleu, where a guy giving the impression of having maybe drunk a little too much but nevertheless quite humorous with it tempted us inside. He chatted a while at our table with us and then went around making sure everything was running smoothly as it should. The chef appeared with a platter of scampi to tempt us probably the last they had available that evening and wanted to move on, but there was no heavy sales pitch. Two of us ultimately chose to share a large dish of fruits de mer which they ate with great relish, and another had bar which she got the chef to prepare for her. My soup de poissons et crabe verts was particularly good. There is a fairly extensive wine carte, particularly strong in Languedoc whites but also from Roussillon, the Camargue, Bourgogne and La Loire. Comfortable seating, a table large enough for us not to feel cramped, friendly prompt service it certainly made up for the bad experience just along the road on the first night.

In truth you should eat at L’Escale in the summer, when you can sit on the terrace and admire the view over the river and the fields opposite, even better to ar... leer más In truth you should eat at L’Escale in the summer, when you can sit on the terrace and admire the view over the river and the fields opposite, even better to arrive by boat. On a chilly November evening the dining room looks clean but a bit tired. However Christian and Catherine’s menu still promotes the village raison d’être, with its main dishes of frog legs and ablettes, and perch freshly caught by Christian in the river below the weir, simple dishes with absolutely fresh produce and beautifully cooked. For those not so fishy orientated there is still Charolais steak, Bresse chicken and volaile. Wines are mostly from the local Mâconais region as one might expect. La Truchère is at the end of the road being on the junction of the river Seille with the Saône there is nowhere to go beyond the village. So it does require a deliberate trip to get there, but even in winter it is still a worthwhile journey for a stroll and decent meal.

We were driving back north with a couple of friends from a trip to La Grande Motte and passed Le Chalet at Grospierres which boasted a menu du jour at 12€. Ther... leer más We were driving back north with a couple of friends from a trip to La Grande Motte and passed Le Chalet at Grospierres which boasted a menu du jour at 12€. There were quite a few cars parked with local 07 number plates which was a good sign so we went in. There is quite a large terrace, and although it is next to the main road the shrubbery does make it less intrusive (though sadly not less noisy). The menu du jour was a slightly odd combination of Thai nems and salad followed by N. African couscous and fruit cake with chantilly cream. The nems were OK but nothing to get excited about. The couscous was with chicken, a couple of little bits of lamb and a small merguez sausage, plus some vegetable “stew”. Again it was edible, but all the meats were very overcooked. My wife chose the river fish sandre from la carte instead. The fish was fairly good, but it had a whole load of other things on the plate that were totally unnecessary and unpleasant. The service was competent and reasonably friendly, though it was slightly mechanistic and I did notice that the smile dropped abruptly if there was any query. It is probably a good enough stop if your main determinant is price, but I’d not want to return.

CHANGEMENT DE PROPRIÉTAIRE We happened upon Le Loisy on Easter Saturday, just the second day of business for the new young owners Cyril Blanc and Noémie. We had... leer más CHANGEMENT DE PROPRIÉTAIRE We happened upon Le Loisy on Easter Saturday, just the second day of business for the new young owners Cyril Blanc and Noémie. We had wandered up from the lock on the river Seille to eat here several months ago, and it was good rustic fare. Unfortunately the owner’s wife became quite ill, and the bar/restaurant had now been sold. As soon as we entered we could see the whole interior had undergone a major make over, and what had been rather old fashioned and sombre was now bright and welcoming, but without going for modern glitz. The à la carte menu had basically five starters, five mains, cheeses, a couple of deserts plus several more based on ice creams and sorbets. There were another three “chef’s specials” on the board. We chose from the Menu du Loisy at 30€ (25€ without cheese . Some little cheesey puff ball gougères appeared for us to nibble while we made our choices, and we ordered a bottle of Raphaël Sallet white Mâcon Uchizy to help our thought processes along. We quickly discovered that the food too had undergone a lift, and what had been tasty rustic food now had much more personality and fine touches. We were with a couple of friends so we covered the range fairly well, and everything was top class. My starter of warm chicken liver paté on a tomato coulis set the ball rolling nicely, as did my wife’s poached egg on carrot mousse with smoked duck lardons and red wine jus. This picked up on the unusual Burgundian combination of red wine and poached egg used in oeuf meurette and used it in a rather lighter dish. Our mains continued in the same vein, and the mignon of pork in a pastry crust with a mustard sauce was particularly noteworthy. In the interests of research (and not down to greed, of course we felt obliged to have the cheese course before continuing with the desserts. The cheeses were all well chosen and in good condition; as desserts the coupe Fougerollaise with sour cherry sorbet, sour cherries in kirsch, vanilla ice cream and chantilly was delicious, as was the pineapple poached in anis, with strawberry ice cream and croutons of gingerbread. Service was prompt and friendly and Noémie paid constant attention to detail we had taken the last piece of bread from the basket and turned to ask for more, only to see her already on her way with a refill ; The elements are mostly sourced locally, and for instance the little lardons of smoked duck were from a smokery a little further down the river Seille at La Truchère. The couple certainly deserve to do well, and we can only wish them good luck. We will certainly be back ourselves in the near future.