Dining in and around Montpellier in southern France - some of my favourite places

France is a culinary hotbed for delicious food and I was fortunate to sample some of it in and around Montpellier with my son, Matthew, somewhat of a local now, and to dine in some restaurants that tourists aren't familiar with.  

La Tomate is a very typical French restaurant, serving real French food. Matthew had been invited there previously by some French friends and was very keen to take me there as well. We finally managed to eat there on the last evening of my stay which was a lovely French experience to finish with. Fish soup is a specialty on the menu here, but we didn't really feel like soup in Summer. Steak tartare, the very raw meat patty is available too of course, and it takes courage to order that but is delicious if made in the traditional way. I'm also pretty sure that frog legs and snails were on the menu as you would expect, however if you have your heart set on eating snails or frog legs, it would be a good idea to check the menu to ensure they are being offered. I've eaten them before when we visited Paris, so didn't feel the need to try them this time. We were really happy with the delicious food we ordered, and the almost homely but elegant way in which it was presented.

I ordered Confit de Canard, delicious duck on a bed of vegetable pasta, with grilled eggplant and greens in the pot.

Poached Sole above and below, in a Beurre Blanc sauce (I think) with vegetables, and radishes for a  garnish around the plate. It was also served with eggplant and some rice and vegetables in the pot. Matthew said the fish was delicious and quite a light meal, which was a good thing as we had already been out to lunch that day! Well it was my last day in France. This meal was delicious in its simplicity. 

There weren't any children's meals on the menu, as could be expected, so we ordered Hugo a French  burger. It was huge, and he ate what he could, so naturally Matthew finished the rest of it. It also came with delicious potato wedges and some eggplant. It could have served two people.

A few photos before dessert.

Dessert definitely had the wow factor for me. This classic Crème Brulée is the best I have ever eaten.

Matthew ordered an ice cream parfait which he enjoyed.

My amazing grandson was smitten with his profiteroles and ice cream. He very kindly offered us a taste, and they were really special.

Matthew at the entrance to La Tomate looking quite pensive at the end of a wonderful night.

When we were leaving, the surrounding streets were full of restaurants and lots of diners.

There was this street on the way back to our car without any restaurants or vehicles in it.

BRAISE

Braise is located in suburban Montpellier at:

Quartier des Beaux Arts

42 Avenue Saint-Lazare, 34000 Montpellier

t. 04 99 62 64 25

Braise isn't in the tourist district of Montpellier, it's near a cemetery, a florist and a school, and most of its clientele are business and corporate people, and so the standard is very high. However, with access to a hire car, the restaurant is very accessible. Matthew and I only intended a visit to the boulangerie next door, but when we arrived, he suggested we should have lunch at Braise instead. The Boulanger Pâtissier Glacier next door is called Palais Saint Lazarre. A few photos of that a bit later though. It was my last day in Montpellier, and we were already booked to dine out that evening at La Tomate, but despite that he said to me that as it was my last day, we should make the most of it, so we did. Magnifique.

I had the best experience at Braise, it wasn't just about eating a meal, enjoying it with good company and leaving. We arrived before the real lunchtime rush, we were seated inside close to the kitchen, and could see the two young chefs cooking. I couldn't help myself and went to the kitchen counter and chatted to the head chef after the entrée and the main meal because they were exquisite meals, and I wanted to personally thank them, and also hopefully gain a few tips about the preparation. They were very generous with their time and their information. 

The entrance to Braise. There is seating inside and outside.

A substantial wine cellar to choose from. We just ordered by the glass as it was lunchtime!

My entrée was raw fish, not sure which variety, possibly sole, served in a delicious French Béchamel sauce, and garnished with small purees of glossy green deliciousness. I asked the chef how they made the green garnish, and he very kindly told me that he uses grape leaves and olive oil, blended to the right consistency and strained. I'm sure there is more to it than that though. It was delicious. To be honest I didn't know I was ordering raw fish, but it was amazing. My order was changed to this one when the chef realised my original order was loaded with nuts which I can't eat. I missed that this was raw fish when the dish was being explained to me by the waiter, but I'm so pleased I had it.

We both ordered the Filet de Boeuf (Beef) for the main, which was tender and delicious, but an additional highlight for me were the whole braised leeks and carrots, cooked to perfection. Just near where we parked across the road from Braise, we saw a very successful market garden in a large paddock. The chef told me all of their seasonal vegetables came from there. From paddock to plate is alive and well at Braise.

The layered Apricot dessert was just outstanding. I saw the apricots served with the tart marinating in a jar on the counter in the kitchen. The chef used thyme and some kind of alcohol in the marinade, and the apricot was exquisite. I really enjoy an apricot dessert.  

There are lots of other delicatessen items for sale as well in the restaurant.

Palais Saint Lazare Boulangerie and Pâtisserie, a few photos. 

Located at 42 avenue Saint Lazarre 34000 Montpellier, phone 04 67 72  00 12, next door to Braise. They also have a good website.

We still purchased a baguette here after lunch to take home.

Yum.

Sète

Enjoying the taste of an authentic Mediterranean seafood lunch with Matthew and Hugo in Sète.

If you would like to read more about Sète, a charming fishing village on the Mediterranean, within driving distance of Montpellier, and all that if offers, you can find what I wrote about it in a previous post here.

St Martin-de-Londres

We had a wonderful day when we drove with the children to St Martin-de-Londres, which is very close to the famous wine and hiking region of Pic Saint Loup. We ate lunch at a small restaurant in the village called Sous le Platane.

A glass of this wine was delicious with our lunch.

A delicious Salad Niçoise, it was very fresh and salty.

Fish and chips for the children, it was really good as well.

Steak, fries and salad, it was very well cooked.

Dessert was such a pleasant surprise. Matthew knew what it was, so we ordered Café Gourmand.

Café Gourmand Dessert, a sample of 4 desserts with coffee.

Café Gourmand

Café Gourmand as a dessert is the French Mini-dessert trend. It is a ménage à trois (threesome) or quatre (four), of mini-desserts and is a wonderful way to sample a selection of the chefs best offerings with a coffee as well. It is a wonderfully light way of approaching a dessert to share. Mini chocolate puddings with chocolate sauce and cream, macarons, miniature tarts, or a mini millefeuille or French pastry are all popular to serve on the plate of a Café Gourmand.  According to an article in Bon Appétit, on December12, 2012, this trend was sweeping America. I wonder if it did. Such a lovely way to eat dessert at the end of a three course meal or plat du jour.

Saint-de-Martin-de-Londres is steeped in history from the 12th century, and deserves a post of it's own.

The village square

Pic Saint Loup in the distance.

A beautiful little flower shop just over the road.

 

Le Coté Jardin

GARDEN SIDE

41 Rue de l'Aiguelongue

34000 Montpellier

Tel:  04 67 41 20 46

This photo courtesy of the restaurants website

And to finish, we ate lunch one day with Hugo, at a small restaurant just down the hill from where Matthew lives in Aiguelongue, that I always walked past to catch the blue tram. I just had to show you this stunning breaded fish dish, surrounded by a delicious sauce and more of those little green garnish drops. These must be the trademark of the French chef at the moment. Because we ordered an entrée, we didn't order dessert even though it was available for the Plat du Jour, or the daily special. I don't have a photo of the entrée unfortunately, but it reminded me of a Middle Eastern pastry, and was delicious and quite filling. The trees in the middle of the restaurant were a real talking point. 

Once again a burger and French fries was available for the children. An American style burger with a French béchamel sauce, interesting..

Bon appétit and thankyou for visiting.

Pauline

In My Kitchen, June and July, 2023

This is a quick roundup of what has been happening in both my French and Australian kitchens and all things related, since I last posted an In My Kitchen, which is a while. Regular readers of my food blog will know that I travelled over to France for two months so I won't repeat the details of what I have already written here about my trip. Most of the cooking I did in France was to feed my son's beautiful family, including my 7 year old grandson, and 4 year old twins, a boy and a girl. The three children have just had birthdays over the last month. I was so fortunate to be there for the twins 4th birthday. This post is my June submission to the #IMK series hosted by the wonderful Sherry from Sherry's Pickings. Each month food bloggers from around the world gather to share what is new in their kitchen.  

Anybody who cooks for children is no doubt aware of their food preferences, but when this includes one who won't eat eggs, or anything obviously containing eggs, one who doesn't like cheese, yes I know it's France, the cheese haven of the world, although he adores fruit and would live on it if possible. One who hates fresh tomato but is fine with pasta and pasta sauce, and then there are the various vegetables and aversions to a few vegetables. However they love pumpkin. Having said all of that though, in general they love food and are good eaters, in particular Evie who eats really well and puts the boys to shame, most of the time. It was a delight for me to be able to cook for them. My son loves his food, and generally does all the cooking for the meals, so they are in good hands as well. I tried to give him a break from cooking whenever I could whilst I was over there. Does any of this sound familiar to those of you with children, or grandchildren? I actually don't remember our children being fussy eaters, but perhaps I've forgotten. However over time children's preferences will change, and the importance of  healthy home cooked food, and just the occasional take away, shines through eventually.

I made a "French" Bread and Butter pudding for dessert one night, using two day old Brioche, Nutella, and used an online recipe for the custard. I was really pleased with how it tasted, however the children thought I could have added more Nutella. I really thought it was sweet enough. Nutella is still so popular in France. In the supermarkets I saw whole shelving bays devoted to Nutella, in bottles and packaging of various shapes and sizes. 

A few batches of my Aussie Damper Scones were always delicious straight out of the oven, just because the children and my daughter in law loved them. They are easy and quick to make, and the ingredients are always on hand, although at times I used some buckwheat flour if we had run out of plain flour. They were also easy to make with little Evie, who loved cooking with me.

This is still a very edible batch given I had help from a four year old, and used a variety of flours as well.

Another batch performing the disappearing act

Evie and I cooking scones together

Corn Flake biscuits were a winner, and Corn Flakes were on rotation over there as a  breakfast cereal, so were generally available in the pantry. The twins took their job of crushing up the cornflakes very seriously. 

French Afternoon tea in the summer garden in Lodeve, where Myrtille's mother Catherine lives was a treat.

Catherine's special French Chocolate cake. She also makes this cake for the children's birthdays.

A view over Lodeve from Catherine's kitchen.

Matthew cooked Canard, or braised Duck breast a couple of nights during my stay. The duck can be purchased with instructions on the packet, and this is Duck breast not Duck legs unlike Duck confit. It wasn't very difficult to cook and was absolutely superb to eat. The presentation on this plate isn't great, but when there are 5 hungry mouths to feed, it's just a relief to have it cooked. Honestly, I've never eaten more delicious duck. We went out for dinner on my last evening in Montpellier and I ordered Duck confit, but it wasn't as enjoyable as the duck my son cooked.

Searing the duck breast

Canard, perfectly pink in the middle

Baked vegetables to accompany the duck

I cooked this simple and delicious chicken traybake with corn fed chicken, which has yellow coloured skin because of the corn they were fed on, and local French vegetables including Kale, leeks, carrots and zucchini, which came in the organic Vegetable and Fruit box that they collect each week. Corn fed chicken is more expensive, but much better quality.

Locally grown organic kale

We call them Madeleines, the French called these  Magdalenas. These little cakes could be purchased in large cellophane packets, and individually wrapped. They were  delicious and looked just like Madeleines.

We enjoyed these French hors d'oeuvres when we were invited out to afternoon aperitifs. They were all bought frozen from a supermarket which only sells frozen food and were delicious.

My son took Hugo, our 7 year old grandson to the French Tennis Open at Roland Garros in Paris while I was over there, and brought us back some beautiful merchandise, a lovely handbag and Roland Garros canvas shopping bag pour moi, and a set of Roland Garros espresso coffee mugs for Mr. HRK. They have pride of place in our kitchen, and the handbag and canvas shopping bag were well used while I was in France.

The June Tropical Ginger Harvest

When we arrived home, it was time to harvest our patch of fresh ginger growing in the back garden. We waited a week to take a breath and settle in, and then the second week was officially "ginger week". We dehydrated a bucket of ginger, and I put aside 1200 grams to make Stem Ginger in Syrup, which I love to have on hand, bottled  in the refrigerator for adding to ginger cakes and desserts. If you have fresh ginger growing, you can read how I make my tropical stem ginger at this link. Yours is probably ready to harvest now as well. It's always ready in Winter to be harvested if it was planted early enough in Spring/Summer.

Tropical Stem Ginger in syrup

I also now have enough powdered ginger to last me for another year. 

Washed

Skins removed

Four trays in the dehydrator ready to be dried for powdered ginger.

I made this Golden Pear, Raspberry, Almond and Maple syrup cake for dessert after I returned home, and used fresh raspberries this time. The first one that I made with frozen raspberries looked completely different with the rich redness of the raspberries colouring the cake in layers. Take a peek at the original post I did on this and you will see what I mean. I'll write up the recipe again though as soon as I can. This is a delicious cake.

I cooked Ratatouille, a French vegetable stew,  in Montpellier, and again when I settled in at home as well. The tomatoes and fresh vegetables in Montpellier were just exceptional and made this dish very tasty.

When we arrived home, I was thrilled to notice that our Italian honey bees were feeding on the Blue Butterfly bush in our front garden. It's a beautiful bush and bees love blue and purple flowers. Mr. HRK inspected the beehive, and despite our absence, it seems to be thriving which is a relief. If we can survive the Spring bee swarming season, we should be harvesting honey later in the year. Fingers crossed.

Thanks for dropping by to read my post. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed sharing it with you.

Warm wishes,

Pauline

Ratatouille, a French Vegetable Stew

Ratatouille is a French vegetable stew, originating from Provence in Southern France where it was cooked as a dish for the poor. However now it is cooked because it is delicious. Starting with  beautifully fresh Mediterranean vegetables, it is the perfect dish to cook in advance or even the day before you wish to eat it. However my preference is to cook it with a delicious roast lamb shoulder or leg, and both can be timed perfectly to be completed before friends arrive for dinner. I think ratatouille is perfect for eating outside on a warm Summer's night or served as comfort food on a Winter's evening. It keeps well in the refrigerator for up to five days, and can also be eaten with chicken or fish throughout the week. 

Montpellier Mediterranee, in France

 I'm home again after 2 months in Montpellier Mediterranee, in southern France, and two weeks in Cairns in Far North Queensland at the beginning and the end of my travels. Singapore Airlines fly in and out of Cairns so I could fly out from there. Montpellier, Mediterranee, in southern France is very close to the Mediterranean coast, and is a beautiful city surrounded by many scenic areas, with a population of over 500,000. The food, and the fresh fruits and vegetables of Summer were everything that I hoped for. Over the next few weeks I'll share some of my French adventures and tales with you. 

Authentically Scottish-style Lentil Soup

 

Lentil Soup is Food for Everyone, and I know you are thinking that there are just so many lentil soup recipes already on the planet. Why post another one? Whilst I am wondering, why haven't I put this superb Scottish soup recipe up before on HRK when I make it so often. It's my go to lentil soup. 

How to make a self-saucing Lemon Delicious Pudding

 

Lemon Delicious Pudding is a very popular self-saucing pudding in Queensland, and after harvesting the first crop of the year of precious lemons from our potted tree, this was the first dessert I wanted to make with them. When I say first harvest, I mean 4 lemons. The recipe produces a luscious and creamy lemon sauce topped with a soft lemon flavoured sponge cake which is an absolute joy to eat. It is also a cinch to make.