Food Finale

Many of you have really enjoyed reading and looking at the photos of all our food adventures.  I can say, however, that eating the food is far more enjoyable than looking at it! One day, perhaps there will be a scratch and sniff and a scratch and taste for a blog!  Till then, our food adventures are sadly coming to an end.  Here are the last two meals we savoured in restaurants.

Le Moulin de la Sorinière in Neuil les Aubiers was a favourite of ours, and so very close!  Around the bend and across from the château on a little country road. 

Kir Royale to pique our appetite.

Feuilleté cheese rolls.

We often ordered a sparkling water with our meals although the regular water is free and very good.

 

The salad was "un genre de salade César".  The greens were from the garden and garnished with cucumber, tiny red peppers, chicken slices and some "lardon" which are cooked pork slices, like bacon.  A dressing and lots of shredded cheese.

I had the pork tenderloin in a rich and creamy sauce.  The sides included sliced carrots, shredded celeriac, and cubed pâtisson (of the pumpkin family).  Those tastes together blended extremely well and were delicious!

Karl had the steak in a pepper sauce and the same sides.

We enjoyed a trifle with grapes and peaches.  Those crushed wafers are spéculoos.

 

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When we went to Niort, we stopped again at Le Grand Café for lunch. 

 

I tried the salmon burger with the fries, a small tossed salad and coleslaw.  The fish was very well prepared, moist and tender, not overcooked.

Karl enjoyed potato pancakes with a steak haché in between, and a green salad.  We know that not everyone in the Trommeshauser family loves potato pancakes... but Karl has always enjoyed them and thought these were particularly good.  As good as the German ones!

We shared a Grand Marnier crêpe, although the flames had gone by the time I snapped the photo.

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After lunch we headed to meet Madame Marguerite Morisson at "Les Archives départementales de Niort".  She was going to bring us to the farm where our Gobeil ancestors came from, so a little gift was in order.  We stopped at l'Épicerie, the specialty store where we had bought our candied Angélique and syrup, and figured we'd find an appropriate gift as a token of our appreciation.  We bought a "coffre de thé", which is a box filled with a variety of teas.  Had we but known what was awaiting us, we would have bought a much more substantial gift, and for four people! Next posting is all about the visit to "La ferme de Chey".

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"Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago."

 

~  Les Brown

 

 

Starting our Good-byes

 

 

Today I did some genealogical research in Niort.  It's rather difficult to take pictures of meetings and documents, but at least the restaurant makes it into the blog!  We do love our food!  

 

We tried a new restaurant (to us) on the main street called La Villa.  It was very chic and very delicious.

 

 

Rosé wine and spicy chips to start us off.

I had the "travers de porc" which were pork chops cut into thick slices in a bed of rich sauce.  More fat than I enjoy, but it's a real delicacy around here.  Served with a tiny cast iron pot of rice and veggies. 

Karl had the "magret de canard" instead of the "canard confit", which means he ate the breast of the duck rather than the leg.  It came with roasted potatoes and beautifully poached peaches.

I had the crème brulée with a Madeleine which is a rather plain and dry cake baked in a tiny little tin.

Karl had a cake-like delicacy with strawberry compote and a mascarpone side.

Karl's grand crème and an Earl Gray for me.  The tea came in a Japanese tea pot.

Because we were in Niort where a lot of Angélique is sold, I bought some Angélique confit and some sirop (syrup) for the Soufflé à l'Angélique we hope to make, and a little bag of Angélique tea leaves.  It'll be fun to let my friends taste these products since they are new to our taste buds.

 

 



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We also went to Le Trait d'Union for possibly the last time.  It was the chef Angélique's birthday, so Vincent was pouring the crémant (champagne) for the restaurant guests.  We toasted to our chef's health and happiness!

 

You know this meal since we've had it before, but it's wonderful to order something that you have tried before and know you will enjoy.  The salad was slightly different with a few more yellow tomatoes thrown in the mix, possibly because the melon season is coming to a close.

We both had the quail in the Chateaubriand sauce with the wonderful veggie sides.

 

Of course we ended with the Soufflé à l'Angélique; as if we could have ordered anything else!

 

 

We're not sure when or if we'll be back in this corner of France, so it was sad to say "Au Revoir" to our new found friends.  At least we've exchanged email addresses.

 

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"The key to knowing joy is being easily pleased."

 

~  Mark Nepo

The Sea Worlds Merry-Go-Round

We are back in Nantes (4th time in this city) to visit the incredible Sea Worlds Merry-Go-Round.  It is fantasy for adults as well as for children!

 



A genuine 360 degree theatre, nearly 25m high and 22m in diameter, has been implanted on the banks of the Loire, next to where the big Elephant takes a walk.  Its three-tier concrete lace design under a big top is decorated with pediments and guarded by 16 fishermen from every sea in the world.

You climb onto an incredible sculpture where you are a spectator to strange and worrying sea creatures in a colossal 3-tiered cake. 

 

I chose the Sea Dragon for my first ride.  (We get two rides for the price of one on Wednesdays!)

 



Karl chose a little sailboat and tried to keep an even keel.

 

 



We witness the sea every which way, from the depths of the bottom, through the abysses, right up to the surface of the sea.

 

 

 

 

This one is based on a turtle, with exaggerated limbs.

 

A very odd fish.



That piranha has very scary teeth!!

A colourful crab.

A Killer Whale perhaps?

Here comes the pirate fish.

 

 Wait for it...

 

It's me riding this menacing creature of the deep!



 

 

 

 

This must be a French escargot.

It goes down into the deep like a submarine.

 

This one too goes down and then surfaces before the ride is over.

Perhaps a kind of catfish with all these weird whiskers.

Tiny fish for tiny tykes.

Round and round we go!

Jules Verne?

I think this one reminded Karl of a tandem motorbike because this was his choice for his second ride.

 



 

Little did he realize it would be a physical workout to get all those claws moving!



 





The promoters of the Sea Worlds Merry-Go-Round create a poster every year.  They are beautiful works of art in their own right!

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We are of the opinion that if you are short on time and want to eat well, go back to a restaurant you know so you won't waste time reading every Menu du Jour at every restaurant you come across before making an informed choice.  We went back to "Le Bouchon" and were happy we did.

Karl had the salmon rillette which he generously shared with me since I only ordered a Plat du Jour, not the Menu du Jour.

I had a piece of chicken with all sorts of Wok veggies.  Because of my nut allergy, they did not add nuts or cook in a nut oil.  Whatever they added to it was delicious!  Tomatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, sweet potato purée.  The "weed salad" was great, despite Karl's frown! 

Karl had a beef stir-fry with loads of veggies and peanuts.

 

Karl finished with the chocolate gâteau which he shared with me.  Well, a few bites at least.

 

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"Every start upon an untrodden path is a venture

which only in unusual circumstances

seems sensible and likely to be successful."

 

~  Albert Schweitzer