Margaret Pilgrim

We visited MVA last week. It is indeed sleek and chic. Welcome is pleasant and seating is comfortable. I immediately noticed that the silverware was heavy and good-feeling, and that the handle of my knife was covered with fingerprints. The menu was much as Patricia Wells described, as was the immediately offered (and offert) glass of Alsatian pinot blanc. I found the bread much more ordinary than Wells described. We ordered the pate en croute and the root vegetbles in broth. We went on to veal kidneys (rare) with small potatoes in Pinot Noir sauce and cod with carrots, raisins and dates in a citrus broth, finishing with a warm chocolate tart and apples in Grand Marnier with pear sorbet and brioche "french toast". This all sounds much more interesting than it was to eat. There were no major mistakes in concept or execution, nor anything that seduced the palate. We traded every course midway because our plates failed to hold our interest. Major selling points: 38 euro 3 course menu; open for Sunday dinner. Note: this appears to be a minority opinion.

We used the TGV on April 6 and April 9 to and from Avignon and Paris. On both trains one could see that the luggage areas had been sealed off with plastic-wrap barriers. In each instance, the plastic had been torn away and luggage was being stored in the usual luggage spaces. Conductors were aware of the situation and made no attempt to replace the barriers or prevent luggage from being stored in those areas. It seems that at present this is another regulation observed in the absence of its inforcement.

That's how I read it also. I don't think that Camdebord has anything to do with L'Ourcine beyond his initial sponsorship or encouragement. I called L'O this morning and booked for this Friday night on the basis of Figaroscope's three heart review.

Today we bottled the Vin d'Orange we started on March 2 using Lucy's recipe. We are a couple of days short of the suggested maceration time, but we are leaving on a trip tomorrow. We used honey tangerines for ours, and the flavor today is lovely. There is a subtle complexity from the vanilla bean and cinnamon stick. I may in the future also try a batch without the spices for a purer citrus taste. We used snap-top/rubber ringed French lemonade bottles, and will keep the wine in the refrigerator since it is not properly corked. I will be interested in tasting it over the course of its tenure. Many thanks, Lucy. Mireille Durandeau's recipe is a keeper! We will salute her and you whenever we serve this vin d'orange. In addition, since we have several pomegranite trees, I can't wait for fall to try JennotJenn's concept, as well as cherry and green walnut wines this summer. I am very interested in the many possibilities this thread suggests, and in hearing others' results. Thanks, all.

Has anyone returned to the US with foie gras since the new regulation went into effect? Is the regulation being enforced in regards to individual travelers (as opposed to importers)? Ignored? Anyone want to talk about it?

Let's do lunch

Lescure is one of the most unusual dinners we have ever had in Paris. I posted about it years ago on rec travel europe. At reception, you are asked smoking or non, and when you say non, you are excorted to an alcove table that seats around 10, all Americans. It was a mixed bag: a professor, minister, travel agent all with spouses, a mother/college-aged daughter duet and us. The table changes when those on the outside are finished, so that the people on the inside can get out. Food is passed over the heads of those sitting on the outside, with the waiter occasionally bobbing your head for you! The food was surprisingly decent. I remember some excellent chanterelle ravioli type things and that several other dishes around the table were quite interesting. As I remember, desserts were simple and good. It is dirt cheap, and although we were somewhat boggled by it at the time, it remains a memorable evening. Should one want to avoid this kind of sitting, ask for "Fumer" at reception, and you will be shown to the French section.

We will be using the TGV during upcoming Easter week, and will report on our experience. We are certainly rethinking our packing for our three day out-of-Paris excursion. At this point, we will each take a single carry-on. What worries me is contemplating summer travel with inexperienced/uninformed vacation travellers necessarily hauling large cases and enormous backpacks. I have the feeling that this new restriction will have to be rethought, if for no other reason than maintaining luggage-free aisles and some degree of public safety.

We greet this change in luggage space as yet another facet of "Welcome to travel in the 21st Century." Looking for the silver lining, I will no longer have to let my husband crawl over me at each stop so he can go monitor the luggage area to make sure no one disboards with our luggage. On the serious side, of course Schneier is correct. And, certainly, many thanks to Mrs. B for the heads up.

We have had enormous success bringing just the opposite. When we visit a home we will take photos of the view from our bedroom window, of a pretty corner of the garden, of an interesting architectural feature of the house. When we return, we will bring one of these images in a simple but pretty frame. Our hosts are thrilled to receive something so personal that tells them how much we enjoyed a previous visit, and are charmed to see a view of their home from a different perspective.

Come west, young girl, come west!

FWIW, we visited Le Reminet sometime mid-2003 on a Sunday night. It was packed and so terribly noisy that we couldn't hold a conversation across the table. Both of our entrees and main courses were quite good, but we asked for the check before dessert or coffee. The chef came out and asked if everything was alright, and I told him that we simply had to leave because the noise was giving my husband a terrible headache. The chef asked us please to return, but to demand a table in the cellar, which he assured us was much more civilized. And with a wink, "locals, not tourists".

Feb/Mar French Saveurs Magazine has a nice review of this small restaurant in the 6th. The young chef, Claude Lamain has experience with Savoy and Ramsey. Unfortunately, the only websites I can find are in English and in German, neither of which tell you a quarter as much as would one in French! (I hate translated menues!) 26 euro lunch; 30 euro dinner menu. Closed Sundays. Aux Saveurs de Claude (English) Has anyone been?

Bigbear and Rachel, thanks for the excellent info and links. This book will help so many people.

OK, bleu, I have a plan. Do chambre d'hote. Do guided photo shoots. Your talents are wasted simply posting here. We're hooked, and we'll pay! If not, do keep your good posts coming.

Great ideas all. You have me leaning toward a savory custard. Maybe artichoke. I really like the idea of a trilogy of small (3 oz.) custards, maybe leek, artichoke or asparagus and maybe something like scallop. Maybe tomato sauce surround, mornay drizzle. It would be pretty, but plating would be a little tedious. I thought the different tastes might help alleviate the sameness of texture. Criticisms? I may print out these good and diverse suggestions for his wife, who faces this dilemna every day. Many, many thanks for your help. And do post any other ideas that come to mind. Thanks.

I am giving a small lunch at which one guest (literallly) can swallow only completely pureed food. Rather than serve him a separate menu, I would prefer that we all enjoy the same dishes. In the late fall, I served gaspacho, cheese souffle and homemade ice cream with liquor dribble. It was a roaring success. This time I am thinking of a wild mushroom cappucino, perhaps another flavor souffle, and another ice cream. I would like help on the middle course. Interesting and substantial souffle flavors? Non souffle, non soup alternatives? Suggestions? Help please! Many thanks.

Shoot, Marlena. I grew up in Watsonville, where we picked artichokes from the back yard! I was an adult before I knew they were considered unusual. However, some thousands and thousands of artichokes later, I had one of the best of my life. In the back of The Mad Hatter bar on Geary in SF, (I can't remember if Nancy Oakes was still cooking there or if she had passed the baton to Barney Brown) I was served a giant artichoke, "stuffed" with seafood in a tomato broth: crab, scallops, calamari, perfectly seasoned broth. I can't remember how we attacked it, but I don't remember it's being particularly messy. And, maybe it was just so good I didn't care! This is a dish worth trying to duplicate.

You mean you really want to hear about cruising the main drag, turning into Pronto Pup, crusing the lot, pulling into a slot if the crowd was interesting, and ordering curly fries and a chocolate coke? The carhops were peers, and were on foot, not skates. Some newer car windows were not shaped right for the trays and you had to be careful not to lose the tray and its contents. Also, it was difficult for the driver to reach with his right hand across and out the window to bring in the order through the driver's side window. (early '50s) Marquard's in Palo Alto. Carhops not peers. You could talk them into bringing special orders that weren't on the menu, like a chocolate frost: chocolate soda run through the milkshake mixer, whipped cream and nutmeg. (mid '50s)

This thread, which started out as a "head scratcher", ie, "is this question answerable?", has been IMHO one of the most interesting and revealing of our many 3-star threads, pointing to the factors that make up a single 3-star experience, as well as the variety among different dining rooms. I don't think enough diners really ask themselves, "What do I want and/or expect from this experience?", the answer to which should dictate the reservation.

Yesterday I started a 4 litre jar of vin d'orange, thanks to this thread. I had no access to bitter oranges, so substituted tangerines. Will report on the outcome in April. Many thanks for the recipe. I can hardly wait til May for cherries and June for green walnuts!

Yes. Maison de Marius I am not sure how current all of the information is on this website. As I posted above, I read about it in a feature article in Gault Millau Magazine, probably sometime in 2002.

I trust I was clear that M. Doubesky never pushed his product at Saint Gayrand, his distillery. Although his prices were high, his product was superb. There was no pressure to buy. I was never sure if he kept opening bottles and producing new glasses out of pride in his work, or to seduce us into staying for the company. I don't know what his profit margin is, but it couldn't be much on our purchase. My memory of the afternoon was one of leaving a table the size of a cardtable absolutely full of dirty brandy snifters. It was a thoroughly hospitable afternoon, but not one for abstainers or even those who drank moderately. In no way did I mean to insinuate that your or any producer was "pushing" his wares, but rather that any one who has a passion for his work and his product will relish sharing both the product, his knowledge and his enthusiasm for both work and product. I posed your generous distiller in contrast to the CdHs we have visited where the husband had a profession outside the home or property, and therefore less energy to invest in conversation with his (or his wife's) guests.

And you, Ann, are exactly right. At the same time, there is an enormous intangible difference between an American B&B and a French chambre d'hote. I have not infrequently felt that subtle awareness of being held hostage to the grand plans of an American innkeeper to which Bux alludes. In fact, we have probably stayed at our last domestic B&B. We have never felt this tension in France, although we have always felt the security of knowing that our host was at our disposal should we have specific needs. Our French hosts seem to understand that we do not need their constant attention or entertainment. Bux does bring up the point that when you visit a producer who is interested in promoting his product, a slightly different relationship might exist.

The concept of staying in someone's home can be scary. In fact, we stayed in our first one quite by accident. We had booked the best room at Reine Sammut's La Feniere in Lourmarin for 5 days, and had made the reservation many months in advance. When we arrived, we were told that our room was not habitable because a water pipe had burst. No, no other rooms were available, but they had booked us into a chambre d'hote in the next village. I began to experience some combination of rage, dispair and terror, but it was late in the aftenoon and we had no choice but to go check out the b&b. We arrived at an attractive 18th Century country home with vineyard where we were shown to our very private suite with an independent entrance: a sitting room and bedroom, separated bathroom and commode. On an outside landing was our private deck with umbrella-table and chairs. Decor and furnishings were crisp and fresh Provençal-simple, a quality mattress and good linens. The bath was state of the art and emaculate; bath linens were new and lush. Views extended over the vineyard to Mt. Sainte Victoire in the distance. There was a sparkling swimming pool and comfortable salon. Breakfast (baguettes warm from the village baker, fruited cake, cheese, yogurt, hardboiled eggs, homemade jams, fresh orange juice, coffee and tea, hot milk) was served in the family's formal dining room. We were the only guests, and we ate alone. During our stay, Madame left several baskets of homegrown fruit at our doorstep. There was not daily maid service. The tariff was 450 ff a night or around $60. including the breakfasts. Madame actually deducted some amount from the total bill because we were not there for several breakfasts, nor did she charge for a bottle of wine from their vineyard! We enjoyed staying here tremendously, returned the next year for a week, and and will be eternally grateful to Reine's pipe (or whatever). Our second experience with a chambre d'hote was also by default. I had tried to book early in Sault for the July lavender festival in Ferrassieres, but was told to write again in April. When I faxed them on April 2, they were "complet". We found a chambre d'hote within a half mile of the festival, this time in a chateau that the owner was/is restoring stone by stone. At the time of our visit, she had two sides habitable, a Japanese cook, a Chinese pastry chef, four rooms including ours that took up an entire floor of the tour, and a thriving tour bus lunch crowd! Our room was, again, very simply furnished, with thoughtful touches like lavender-filled pillows. The bath, again, was state of the art. Breakfast was simply bread, cake, juice and coffee. The table d'hote, which we took advantage of one night, was superb: all produce from the farm, and the best braised lamb we had tasted, grown within several hundred yards of the kitchen. The charge 600 ff, b&b. I can't remember the charge for dinner. Whatever it was, it wasn't enough. By now, we were over our fear, and in addition had learned that we could find a chambre d'hote closer than a hotel to some of the events that were our travel targets. For an antique event in Barjac we lucked onto a wonderful 18thC townhouse owned by an elegant horsewoman and her ex-porche racer husband. Here we enjoyed an enormous two room suite, decorated in luxe and gorgeous fabrics, antique bed linens, sumptious duvets, ballroom-sized bathroom with whirlpool soaktub and fabulous shower. Breakfasts included warm housemade fruit tarts, fromage blanc with rose or almond syrups, peach soup, everyday something new, but everyday a selection of four homemade breads with housemade jams. Aperitifs on the terrace at 6:30 accompanied by slices of warm onion tart. We have stayed here twice, and return in April. 105 euros, b&b. Gault Millau magazine had a feature on a woman in Quezac who ran a chambre d'hote and offered extraordinary table d'hote dinners. Last summer we had the opportunity to test her hospitality: an enormous room with designer linens, sitting area with TV at one end of the room. Designer bath; separate commode and bidet. Lush bathroom linens. Dinner was an unforgettable experience, from the housemade aperitifs through the all-home-grown fruits and vegetables we were served, the best magret we had ever had, wines and housemade liquours, excellent if sometimes bi or tri lingual conversation. Our room, dinner and breakfast for two people: 115. euros. We are completely sold on the concept of this kind of lodging. It gets us close to where we want to go. More likely than not, the room size, furnishings and bath are far superior than you would get at a small hotel, where profit is an important issue. Baths particularly tend to be absolutely modern and luxe, since if one is going to redo a property with a mind to hosting guests, a new bath is imperative, and one might as well go all out with amenities. You tend to worry about being in someone's home. But usually the private and public parts of the home are well delineated. The host is usually a very busy person who has little interest in taking up your time, but at the same time will take time to instruct you on things of local interest...if you ask. Most chambre d'hotes are rated by Gites de France, and are given wheat sheaf (epis) ratings, 1 through 4. We have always stayed at 3s and 4s. 3 "epis" rooms always have private baths; furnishing range from simple to luxe. 4 "epis" facilities are supposed to be luxurious. Gites de France publishes a yearly guide of all their members (19 euros); as well, they publish departmental guides which you can get free by writing the departmental tourist office. These guides are in French, but are pretty easy to decifer. One can find tremendous information by "googling" the area you want to visit and adding chambre d'hote (eg: dordogne chambre d'hote). In addition, there are many sites that offer lodging by area. These are but a few. FrenchConnection LikHom Best of Perigord Staying in a Chambre d'Hote can offer you a feeling for the real countryside, for France Profound, that we have never found in a hotel. When we pay our tiny bills at the end of a stay, we frequently feel that we have shortchanged our hosts because of all that they have unknowingly given us.