It’s that time of year again. Every Friday evening in July and August there is a large outdoor wine festival in Montpellier's city centre. The principal is that you pay for a festival glass with three tickets which are each valid for a wine tasting at any one of the vintner's stands. Now there are also a lot of food stands which accept a certain number of tickets for their wares. In theory you take your little glass to the three vintner stands of your choice, tell them which one of their wines you would like to sample, swish your glass around and talk genteelly about varietals with a local wine grower. The reality now is that it has become a victim of its own success. Expect to wait in long lines and battle for the attention of somebody to half fill your glass. Still, there is a good general ambiance and it can be a good budget night out and if you are determined enough it should give you the opportunity to taste a number of different regional wines. Usually there are about 20 different domaines represented.
Les Estivals started off very quietly. I think I went to the first one a number of years ago when there were just over a hundred people who came out to taste wines in an open air environment along l'esplanade Charles De Gaulle in Montpellier. It has grown such that one must get there very early to find a patch of grass to sit down on. You must get there even earlier to get a seat at one of the long tables. I usually end up on the steps of the Mussée de Fabre art annex. It is a good place to take newcomers to Montpellier and allow them to bask in the good wine and weather of the region.
Showing posts with label Montpellier. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Montpellier. Show all posts
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Montpellier markets
Like any French city worth its salt, Montpellier has a variety of markets scattered throughout the municipality.
If you are a visitor to France, a market visit is strongly recommended. I say this because the markets are important to French life on so many levels. It seems indisputable that the culture and history of France and its food/cuisine are inextricably entwined, regardless of whether or not Marie Antoinette really said "Let them eat cake". The map of France is often represented as a food map with little images of comestible specialities for each region. The uninitiated might be forgiven for thinking it necessary to mount an enormous cream filled pastry and then wade through a vast marsh of foie gras to gain sight of the Spanish border... that is if the bottles of muscat and the Catalan cake don't block the view.
With this I would like to present you the markets of Montpellier but first a few words to the wise: Buy that which is in season, check prices and origin indications before purchase, favour regional specialties. Languedoc Roussillon has a bounty of wonderful things to offer so lap up the local specialties and don't go crying if you can't find any Norman crepes.
Marche Des Arceaux:
Open Saturday and Tuesday mornings. Along the picturesque aqueduct that passes over 'Boulevard des Arceaux'
This is probably the most colourful and scenic market in town. It is my favourite. Always animated, frequented by buskers and local characters. This is also known as "Le marché bio" (organic market) in reality only about 1/4 of the stands specialize in organic products. The majority of the stands represent local producers whom at least make an effort to reduce their environmental impact, even if they don't get the official "agriculture bio" label from the French government. Nearby 'Rue Marioge' has a reputable butcher shop and bakery along with some quality ethnic take aways worth checking out.
Halles Castellan:
Rue de la Loge.
Open every day though many stands are closed in the early afternoon in respect of siesta time. Covered markets are called "Halles" in French. This is the most central market in town and generally quite expensive.
Halles Laissac:
Open every morning except Monday. Place Alexandre Laissac. A bit grungy but quite traditional and representative of the "halles" you will find in working class districts all over urban France. It is often better value than the other main markets in the city core.
Marché de Figaroles:
Open every morning. Place Figarole. The cheapest market in town by a country mile. The produce tends to be of provenance unknown or at least not advertised. This market is also known as the "Marché Arab" but this invites confusion with the 'Marché de Mosson' in the North of the city. Another advantage of this market is that it is surrounded by a number of quality budget shops to complete your shopping. There are two fishmongers on one side and numerous Halal butchers on the other with a few small middling bakeries scattered around. Of the two fishmongers one is decidedly down market with a tiny garage like interior and the day's catch chalked up on a blackboard outside. The other is very bright hygienic and professional but locavores beware there are year round salmon from Scotland and Norway and other items that have doubtlessly accumulated their frequent flyer miles.
Marché de la Mosson:
Tramway stops La Mosson or 'Les Halles Paillade'.
On one end you have the covered market which is open every day and at the other you have the massive flee market of Mosson. It is a local bigoted joke that if something is stolen you need to go to Mosson to buy it back. It is true that you can find just about everything at this market and usually it is quite inexpensive. It is at the extreme North end of the town in Montpellier's most notorious 'ban lieu'. It is surrounded by low rent high rise apartment complexes. It is easy to get there with the tram but give yourself sufficient time to get there, look around and get back. It is a good half hour from the city center and it is a very big market on Sunday.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Montpellier Restaurants
La Grange
Rue Jean Jaques Rouseau, Montpellier
The chef, waiter, barman raconteur is exploding with culinary energy. You feel more like a guest in his home than a restaurant client but instead of family portraits on the walls there are lovingly framed photos of prized mushrooms. The patron is a mushroom fanatic and a variety of mushrooms figure on just about every part of his menu. On your way to the bathroom you pass through the kitchen where your omnipresent host will be happy to show you what he is simmering on the stove. He loves nothing more than seeing you enjoy your/his food and telling you its story and how it got to your plate. If he has not fished, raised, picked, shot, harvested, cured or cultivated it himself he can tell you what member of his immediate family or entourage has. Don’t miss his home made liqueurs. The six table, two room restaurant is a treasure trove of brick a brack with no apparent distinction made between country kitsch, antiques and folk and fine art. Shut weekends + hunting and harvest seasons or at the hint of any kind of holiday. The place is big on personality, charm and good ingredients if any reproach can be made it is that is a little short on the wine list. One can only hope that some more vintners penetrate the host’s personal entourage. Of that limited red wine list I suggest going for the ‘’pichet’‘ (house wine) or ‘’Malpere’‘. Evenings are less crowded and more personalized than lunches when the judges, lawyers and med school professors in the know make it their canteen.
I have left this restaurant with various blood- alcohol levels but I have never left the place in low spirits. I have no idea what it costs, I am usually having such a good conversation I don’t notice.
Le Grillardin
3 place Chapelle Neuve
Very high standards for upscale middle prices. As I understand it this restaurant is the product of a highly placed rising star chef that decided he could remain on a human scale and do what he loved doing most by dropping out of the dizzy competition for a place among the big names. So he moved to Montpellier from some more traditionally gastronomical part of France (Montpellier doesn’t even really compete when it comes to l’art de la table of some other regions of France) and he set up a small place with his wife. It is very professional yet somehow they manage to be genuinely friendly and down to earth. The chef and his little crew often come out and thank the diners at the end of service. Feel free to try something you have never had before on their menu, disappointments are practically unheard of. Le morteau avec camembert is excellent. They have a great wine list and they often offer to decant it for you if it is a particularly good wine. The ‘’fondant au chocolate’‘ desert is a must for chocolate afficionados. If I take people to one place to experience real French food in Montpellier I take them here. Menus start at about 28 Euros a person. -you will be very full.
Le Ban Des Gourmands
(not to be confused with Les Bains) tramway stop -place carnot
5 Place Carnot (angles between Boulevard de Strasbourg, rue H. René, rue Louis Figuier)
An unlikely rdv gourmand in a working class neighbourhood with lots of traffic and on the wrong side of the tracks. The menu is simple, you choose ‘’coté mere" or "coté terre". I am a carnivore so perhaps biassed however I think the latter menu is better value. Whichever you chose you will get a variety of very well prepared dishes on your plate. Coté terre is likely to have some duck, lamb and steak. Everything is done at a high level of quality. The chef takes great pride in perfecting traditional recipes and sourcing quality food that is controlled at every step of the process before it gets to your plate. He is happy to tell anyone about the breed of cattle he selects from a particular area which his butcher ensures are well fed, exercised and slaughtered. The influences come from all over France there is a particular Corsican touch which is evident mostly in the decor.
Menus are about 28 Euros.
Au Bonheur Des Tartes/du sud-ouest
4 rue des trésories de la bourse
This Toulousian bistro does a very filling lunch of the freshest savoury pies and salad but don’t be afraid of the boudin noir aux figues (blood pudding with figs) as an alternative to their staple pie fare. Expect great olives, salad with delicious herbs and quality charcuterie (cold cuts) This is family run and feels a little like a South Western French grandmother’s kitchen. Their wine list is good and varies from the usual stuff in Montpellier because they favour wines from the Toulouse region. Usually you get a one dish meal here (it’s more than copious enough) and they all contain three different savoury quiche type pies and salad with herbes, a slice of orange and some olives. The different selections are just to help you decide what you want with it, for example: goat’s cheese, sausage, foi gras, etc. The combos range from about 11 to 16 Euros depending on your level of decadence. You should try to book ahead or get there early, however you may also want to take advantage of the fact that this restaurant actually serves later in the afternoon whereas most French restaurants operate on strict opening and closing times.*
Cheapies.
There are numerous places where you can get a pleasant 3 course meal with a cup of coffee or a 1/4 bottle of wine for the equivalent of a Canadian 20$. Mostly this is at lunch but there are a few that offer the same service in the evenings. ‘’cheap and cheerfuls’‘ as mon ami Simon says.
Restaurant Cerdan
8 rue Collot (off place Jean-Jaurez)
-open evenings, closed sundays (everything is cheap for what they offer and they often throw in complimentary drinks and nibbles but the deserts are pretty mediocre)
Le Dauphin
23 Rue Chaptal
-open lunches, Monday to Friday only
a little bit off the beaten path but walkable
La bouchon de Saint Roch
and many more like it in the area around l’eglise de Saint Roch/ place Saint Roch
another really good one, (exceptional value) near saint roch is ‘L’agricole’ or ‘café Leon’.
There are a couple more hole-in-the-wall lunch spots of good value on rue Faubourg de Courreau. - which is a more African and Arab neighbourhood.
Good restaurants, bakeries and butchers are generally closed Sunday and Monday. If you see a lot of old people eating inside, it’s generally a good sign.
Rue Jean Jaques Rouseau, Montpellier
The chef, waiter, barman raconteur is exploding with culinary energy. You feel more like a guest in his home than a restaurant client but instead of family portraits on the walls there are lovingly framed photos of prized mushrooms. The patron is a mushroom fanatic and a variety of mushrooms figure on just about every part of his menu. On your way to the bathroom you pass through the kitchen where your omnipresent host will be happy to show you what he is simmering on the stove. He loves nothing more than seeing you enjoy your/his food and telling you its story and how it got to your plate. If he has not fished, raised, picked, shot, harvested, cured or cultivated it himself he can tell you what member of his immediate family or entourage has. Don’t miss his home made liqueurs. The six table, two room restaurant is a treasure trove of brick a brack with no apparent distinction made between country kitsch, antiques and folk and fine art. Shut weekends + hunting and harvest seasons or at the hint of any kind of holiday. The place is big on personality, charm and good ingredients if any reproach can be made it is that is a little short on the wine list. One can only hope that some more vintners penetrate the host’s personal entourage. Of that limited red wine list I suggest going for the ‘’pichet’‘ (house wine) or ‘’Malpere’‘. Evenings are less crowded and more personalized than lunches when the judges, lawyers and med school professors in the know make it their canteen.
I have left this restaurant with various blood- alcohol levels but I have never left the place in low spirits. I have no idea what it costs, I am usually having such a good conversation I don’t notice.
Le Grillardin
3 place Chapelle Neuve
Very high standards for upscale middle prices. As I understand it this restaurant is the product of a highly placed rising star chef that decided he could remain on a human scale and do what he loved doing most by dropping out of the dizzy competition for a place among the big names. So he moved to Montpellier from some more traditionally gastronomical part of France (Montpellier doesn’t even really compete when it comes to l’art de la table of some other regions of France) and he set up a small place with his wife. It is very professional yet somehow they manage to be genuinely friendly and down to earth. The chef and his little crew often come out and thank the diners at the end of service. Feel free to try something you have never had before on their menu, disappointments are practically unheard of. Le morteau avec camembert is excellent. They have a great wine list and they often offer to decant it for you if it is a particularly good wine. The ‘’fondant au chocolate’‘ desert is a must for chocolate afficionados. If I take people to one place to experience real French food in Montpellier I take them here. Menus start at about 28 Euros a person. -you will be very full.
Le Ban Des Gourmands
(not to be confused with Les Bains) tramway stop -place carnot
5 Place Carnot (angles between Boulevard de Strasbourg, rue H. René, rue Louis Figuier)
An unlikely rdv gourmand in a working class neighbourhood with lots of traffic and on the wrong side of the tracks. The menu is simple, you choose ‘’coté mere" or "coté terre". I am a carnivore so perhaps biassed however I think the latter menu is better value. Whichever you chose you will get a variety of very well prepared dishes on your plate. Coté terre is likely to have some duck, lamb and steak. Everything is done at a high level of quality. The chef takes great pride in perfecting traditional recipes and sourcing quality food that is controlled at every step of the process before it gets to your plate. He is happy to tell anyone about the breed of cattle he selects from a particular area which his butcher ensures are well fed, exercised and slaughtered. The influences come from all over France there is a particular Corsican touch which is evident mostly in the decor.
Menus are about 28 Euros.
Au Bonheur Des Tartes/du sud-ouest
4 rue des trésories de la bourse
This Toulousian bistro does a very filling lunch of the freshest savoury pies and salad but don’t be afraid of the boudin noir aux figues (blood pudding with figs) as an alternative to their staple pie fare. Expect great olives, salad with delicious herbs and quality charcuterie (cold cuts) This is family run and feels a little like a South Western French grandmother’s kitchen. Their wine list is good and varies from the usual stuff in Montpellier because they favour wines from the Toulouse region. Usually you get a one dish meal here (it’s more than copious enough) and they all contain three different savoury quiche type pies and salad with herbes, a slice of orange and some olives. The different selections are just to help you decide what you want with it, for example: goat’s cheese, sausage, foi gras, etc. The combos range from about 11 to 16 Euros depending on your level of decadence. You should try to book ahead or get there early, however you may also want to take advantage of the fact that this restaurant actually serves later in the afternoon whereas most French restaurants operate on strict opening and closing times.*
Cheapies.
There are numerous places where you can get a pleasant 3 course meal with a cup of coffee or a 1/4 bottle of wine for the equivalent of a Canadian 20$. Mostly this is at lunch but there are a few that offer the same service in the evenings. ‘’cheap and cheerfuls’‘ as mon ami Simon says.
Restaurant Cerdan
8 rue Collot (off place Jean-Jaurez)
-open evenings, closed sundays (everything is cheap for what they offer and they often throw in complimentary drinks and nibbles but the deserts are pretty mediocre)
Le Dauphin
23 Rue Chaptal
-open lunches, Monday to Friday only
a little bit off the beaten path but walkable
La bouchon de Saint Roch
and many more like it in the area around l’eglise de Saint Roch/ place Saint Roch
another really good one, (exceptional value) near saint roch is ‘L’agricole’ or ‘café Leon’.
There are a couple more hole-in-the-wall lunch spots of good value on rue Faubourg de Courreau. - which is a more African and Arab neighbourhood.
Good restaurants, bakeries and butchers are generally closed Sunday and Monday. If you see a lot of old people eating inside, it’s generally a good sign.
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