Oysters!

Le Cheval Rouge
30 Rue Nationale, Chisseaux
ph +02-47238667

23rd Dec 2001 Sunday 7.30pm
Ben, Ade, Tan, Grant, Carolyn, Amos, Mikyong

The restaurant was a recommendation by our chateau host and what a fine choice. The outside was decorated with sprinkling of fairy lights, and patio plants. In summer I can imagine sitting outside, but tonight was far too cold. Inside we were greeted by the staff who took our coats and hats, and we were shown to the cosy dining room. By description, the décor doesn't sound great - pastel pink walls, beams in the ceiling, pot pourri, but somehow it all worked to make the interior cosy and very, very French.

I couldn't pass up the St Fines huit de Clair oysters which were the best I've tasted in a long time, and Carolyn was very pleased with the escargot, a generous dozen sizzling in pools of butter and garlic.

My main of the duck was rich and full of flavour. For dessert, I had chocolate (very chocolately), vanilla and praline ice-cream but Tania won with the raspberry and lemon sorbet, which was just excellent. Grant had to eat his words as he had dissed it before tasting it. Silly boy.

Easy to find, and parking across the road. A la carte or fixed menu available.
Approx 300FF pp.

8/10

Don't let the floral decor scare you off the great food

29th Dec 2001. Ben, Ade, Tan, Grant, Amos, Mikyong, Carolyn, Sasha, Steve

Our second visit to this charming restaurant was a good choice for its value and fine food. The amuse bouche were different than our first visit, the half-dozen St Fines de Claire oysters yet again were delicious and exploding with taste - just add a squeeze of lemon, et voila!

This time I tried the Beef tournedos, and wasn't disappointed. As I don't usually eat red meat, I found it very filling, and the taste not overpowering.

Dessert this time around was a new addition to the menu, the 'Mushrooms' which were meringue and cream in a mushie shape, drenched in hot chocolate sauce, which were great, but even better was the spoon of vanilla ice-cream made from vanilla beans.

 Rude looking mushies

Yet another wonderful meal and we definitely had made the right decision to return to this restaurant. Service was friendly and fast, and the waitress very helpful in assisting with an english translation of the menu.

Overall: Couldn't fault the food at all, and great value at approx 280FF pp (they would not accept a tip but we succeeded in the end!).

9.5/10

 

 

Charles Barrier
101 Avenue de la Tranchee, Tours Nord
ph +02.47.41.80.95

24th Dec 2001 Monday night, Xmas Eve. 7.30pm
Ben, Ade, Tania, Grant, Amos, Mikyong, Carolyn, Sasha, Steve, Jo, Joachim

The French celebrate on Xmas Eve by going out and painting the town red. Charles Barrier, with its fine reputation as one of the Loire Valley's premier restaurants was our choice. The banner outside, spot-lit 'just so', marked it out as being 'a bit posh'. We felt a little underdressed when some of the other diners arrived dressed to the nines in evening gowns and tuxedos!

I had read about this restaurant on the web and its fine haute cuisine. Its competition is Jean Bardet, which the locals think is overrated and overpriced. I'm sure the debate will go on, but I much preferred the elegantly modern interior that Charles Barrier has, over the rather old-fashioned look and flashiness of Jean Bardet.The décor is beige modern-traditional, and the waiting staff look very smart in beige 3 piece suits.

The special Xmas Eve menu consisted of the following gastronomic delights: Amuse bouche which was an artfully arranged langoustine draped over shellfish including an oyster and a scallop. The choice of the Cream of cauliflower soup with a swirl of foie gras, or foie gras; followed by Granite de champagne, and for the mains either chapon or biche, the the welcomed plainer choice was the chapon with vegetables as I had overdosed on foie gras in the past couple of days. Amos loved the fromage platter but most of us were already full…then the petit fours arrived, platters of marshmallow, fruit cubes in sugar (sort of like fruit jubes!) and sugared chestnuts which Mikyong loved.

Service was excellent from the female maitre d and the sommelier but when it got busy they tended to the other tables, leaving the junior staff which often forgot about us when we required service. Very extensive wine selection.
800FFpp incl tip, but to be expected at this top establishment.

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L'Aubineire
29 rue Jules-Gautier, St Ouen les Vignes (north of Amboise)
ph 02.47.30.15.29

Xmas Day 25th Dec 2001 lunch

L'Aubineire's beautiful Xmas table (matching jerseys optional)

Another great recommendation from our chateau host. We got a little lost getting to the place, but worked up an appetite by the time we got there. When we took our seats, we stopped conversation in the restaurant as all eyes swivelled to the strange-strangers. A little disconcerting as whenever one of us got up to go to the bathroom, or take a photograph of the table, the talking stopped again…

The menu was a little confusing as it was a fixed menu and depended on which combination you wanted: the complete menu plus wine, or just champagne, or one less dish plus wine or champagne...sounds straightforward now but when written in French by non-anglaise speaking staff, an adventure.

Menu included foie gras en deux facons- confit et croque au sel, chutney de mangue, accompanied by the Jurancon moelleux, clos uroulat 1998. The mango chutney toned down the richness of the foie gras making it a very palatable entrée.

The winner of the whole day though was the next course, the file de bar au salpicon de homard, coulis cresson which was absolutely divine. The bass was melt-in-the-mouth superb, so fresh, letting the delicate flavours shine through. Accompaniament was a local white, Vouvray 1/2sec, Clos Naudin 2000.

The granite d'Hypocrate was one of the best I've tasted in France, which was a very mulled wine flavour and not too strong.

I was pleased to see the main was a relatively plain choice, chicken, Supreme de chapon sur on saute de chanterelles et legumes anciens (wine: Baron Villeneuve du Chateu Cantemerle 1993). The next course (yes there's more) was fromage, Coulommier aux truffes et Vacherin Fermier (creamy).

I failed the 4th course challenge and opted out from the Gratin de pommes, sabayon noix et raisin, baked apples slices in a cheesy sauce. Sasha was intrigued by the unusual combination which was very, very rich and creamy (apparently). The final dessert was worth waiting for, a chocolate sensation of white, dark and milk - the bougie de Noel au parfum d'organge et son parfait glace aux marrons Maury.

We then rolled out of the restaurant, 6 hours after we'd arrived. A successful Xmas of gluttony achieved.
700FF pp.

Décor: a little bit hotelly looking, but clean; service friendly. Overall: 7.5/10

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The outside looks very rustic, but once we were shown through to the chic restaurant, I wish I'd not worn jeans. Tourist.

Most striking is the use of colour in the décor. The table was set in with grassy green platters and deep brown beaded tea light shades. Attention was given to how the cuisine worked with the crockery, resulting in very strong combinations of colour and texture.

The amuse bouche of escargot and cockles with fruit salsa was presented as pools of colour on a crisp white plate, as was my entrée of the risotto with chicken and sundried tomato (my self-imposed foie gras ban was now in place). The mains were also presented beautifully. Having found the French food a little rich of late I chose a non-meaty dish of the rouges barbet. Then it arrived, a visual poem of an orange hue on a square of dark brown…pork crackling. The fish tasted great but to eat the whole crackling was a little too rich for me.

Ben ordered beef, which was light and tasty, and Tania's lamb (on a square glass platter) with curry sauce and roasted garlic was a bit too gamey for my liking.

I chose a dessert called Dacquoise et sorbet de chocolat, which was layers of chocolate cake with a biscuity base (like a big Kit Kat!!), the sorbet was very cocoa-y. Petit fours were the yummiest we've had, a selection consisting of mini custard tarts, chocolate cups, eclairs and more. The Le Pas bordeaux was a smooth accompaniament.
500FF pp.

Overall: Wow. 8/10

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Le Lys D'or
Place Plumereau, Tours. ph 02.47.20.88.88

24th Dec 2001 lunch

We found this charming patisserie/café off the main road, Rue Nationale, on a square lit by a small carousel. This spot was so picturesque even the Chinese restaurant across the lane was housed in a mock beam building.

The pastries here were delicious which seems to be par for the course in France. There was a huge leaf tea selection (ie more than 8 blends). We filled up on the panini and pastries which was proved to be a bit stupid later on in the evening when we couldn't eat to maximum capacity at Charles Barrier. We bought an apple and apricot flan for Boxing Day, which was one of the nicest ones we saw including at the nearby food market.
30FF each - cheap and chic

Le Pekin
6 rue de la Paix, Amboise
ph 02.47.57.21.27

lunch

Thank god for Chinese food. Friendly service from the Vietnamese owner. The big bowl of wonton soup was the best. The dishes were standard Chinese fare but with a very spicy edge - it must be the Vietnamese influence. I think I detected MSG. The best dish was the pork with bamboo shoots and chinese mushrooms.
125FFpp

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Disclaimer: Please note reviews of restaurants are the personal opinion of a particular dining experience only. The writer is not a professional food critic and dining encounters are experienced in the role of a customer and the meal is paid for out of one's own pocket (or Ben's).

All content and images are the property of Adrienne Wong and may not be used or copied without permission. © 2002