Provence and Loire Dining
 

We'll be basing our trip of Provence in St. Remy and our Loire Valley tour in Montrichard. I'd love to hear suggestions for restaurants for lunch and dinner in and around those spots in all price ranges. We are particularly interested in the "local" experience. <BR> <BR>In St. Remy, we will stay at Chateau des Alpilles, and in the Loire Valley, we will stay at Chateau de Chissay.

I wished I could remember the name of the restaurant but I don't. I ate dinner in a lovely little African restaurant near the old city wall in Arles - great hospitality and food. <BR>As for the Loire - there are lots of good restaurants around the Place Plumerau in Tours.

My best dining experience in France (actually ate there 5 nights) was in the town of Chaumont on the Loire(just below the Chateau) <BR> <BR>It was called Chez Collette. Not a fancy place, but good food, served in a reasonable time. This was in '84 so can't guarantee it is still the same. Also ate at a very nice one star restaurant in the general area (east of town a few miles, I think - I wasn't driving), but can't remember the name

Daniel: We spent 2 weeks in France last summer, Paris down to St. Remy, and would give 2 recommendations: eat at least one night at des Alpilles. We stayed there also, and ate there 2 of our 3 nights in the area. Frankly, may sound odd, but it had a lovely "local" feel to it despite being a hotel. (Our final night they only served 4 tables total for dinner, yet the menu was quite different from 2 nights prior, you are out under the enormous sycamour trees, on the courtyard, delightful service...frankly, those dinners were among our highlights of the trip.) <BR>In St Remy, friends had said we must go to Assiette de Marie; we did, and altho it looked like that "local" thing, the food was of a different region (actually, I think it was Corsican or something) and we spent the whole time wishing we were at the hotel. <BR>In Loire Valley, we loved Au Plaisir Gourmand in Chinon, which is wonderful. Beautiful setting, grand menu and service. My husband wore a jacket and no tie, most of the other men we saw during the evening also were in jackets. <BR>We are heading back next year, and my husband loved Chinon area so much, he wants to go back there. <BR>Enjoy!

We used to live in Paris and always recommended Amboise as the town to stay in to explore the area (it's about 10 minutes from Chenonceau). There is a wonderful, fairly new hotel there: Le Manior Les Minimes Phone #: 02 47 30 40 40, Fax #: 02 47 30 40 77, and I've been to a local restaurant there several times that is fabulous and affordable: : L'Epicerie. The staff seems stand-offish but they're just reserved -- chat them up a bit and they will love you!

Daniel, <BR> <BR>This will be our 8th straight year staying in St. Remy. It is a beautiful village. If you are there in July you can experience the lavender areas near by in Sault, and in the Luberon. <BR> <BR>Two nice local restauranants in St. Remy are the Gousse d"Ail and La Source. The former is run by a friendly fellow, Zhebby. The restaurant is small, 14 tables, so reserve in advance. La Source is especially good for its garden dining. Food in both is excellent. (My wife and I stay in a small hotel, L'Amandiere, on the outskirts of St. Remy. It is very nice as is, of course, Chateau des Alpilles.) <BR> <BR>If your travels take you near Gordes you must dine in the Mas de Tourteron. Have an outdoor lunch--the food, the setting sont parfait. <BR> <BR>Bonne Route!

Head a little south of St. Remy to Paradou/Maussane de Alpilles (they are next to eachother) and you MUST eat at Le Petit France - OUTSTANDING meals and very reasonable. The wine list is like a phone book. There's another place there called Ou Ravi B...something - the chef is Francois and the back patio is just as heavenly as the food. Upper priced as Le Petit France is. Grab a Gault Millau Paris/Provence book before you go - they have the best restaurant reviews for those locations. <BR> <BR>Also, in the back streets of St. Remy, if you can't possibly eat another heavy French dinner and need a quick change of food for one night, there's a tiny Italian place that's quite good and loaded with charm. I think it's the only Italian place there, so you could probably ask around for it. Very inexpensive. Have a great time!