Troyes, Chaumont, Thonnance/Joinville restos

[John Talbott]

Hi; Colette has it in her head to go to the Chateau de Cirey, home to Voltaire and Emilie de Chatelet after reading "Passionate Minds: Emilie du Chatelet, Voltaire, and the Great Love Affair of the Enlightenment: David Bodanis: Books."

We'll start in Nancy, where there's good info here, and wind up in Troyes but in between the guidebooks are pretty unrevealing.

Anybody got any ideas? Thanks.

[marlena spieler]

Don't miss Troyes, it is charming with its wooden beamed houses in the bright colours that they originally were painted in. there is a statue of Rashi, the 13th century (?) Jewish scholar, right in the central square, and there is a really charming hotel down the street where, lets see, the best western is? maybe its called something like three birds?

food all about champagne, andouiettes, chaorce cheese, all rich things that are good with Champagne to cut its richness. wish i could suggest a specific restaurant. ate a fab grape tart at a vineyard, it was the season......

[Dave Hatfield]

If you are willing to go somewhat out of your way there are a number of marked restaurants on the interactive map.

Failing that I will await as we all will for your discovery's so I can add them to the map.

[julot-les-pinceaux]

In Nancy don't miss the craquelines of Lalonde and go to the coverred market, Wolf le volailler in particular -- for restaurants, the Michelin is reliable. Also, go to Le Hall du Livre, an incredible place for books and CDs. In Troyes, don't miss the market either and the good pastries across the street from tha market. Skip Ma Bourgogne if I remember the name correctly. Both places are where my grandmother lives/lived, so I did not try many restaurants but I know there is good food.

Edited May 29, 2008 by julot-les-pinceaux (log)

[John Talbott]

Thanks Julot; I should have cross-referenced your prior contribution to the Nancy thread for those wanting info on that city specifically.

[TarteTatin]

St. Menehould.

They have a great restaurant that we read about that serves frites cooked in pork fat.

Du Cheval Rouge.

We went a year ago in the winter and they were closed.

So we went across the street to a place that looks like just a bar in the front. Once in the back, however, it was a charming dining room and Mr. Tarte Tatin had the most incredible pigs foot. I, however, not eating most of the stuff on the menu (not a picky eater, but this was a bit much for me), ordered a simple lardon omelet that was delicious. There was also a great local aperitif too. Wish I could remember what it was...

The town itself is where Louis was re-captured just when he was leaving France.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

In order to work up an important appetite, please, please allow enough time to walk throught Troyes' fabulous ancient tool museum. Even I, a complete ignoramus when it comes to things mechanical, was enthralled with this extraordinary collection. Many if not most of them have a direct connection with growing, harvesting, preparing food including animal husbandry, or making tools for doing the same.

[John Talbott]

After a while in Nancy described here:

We stayed and ate at the only ecrevisses farm in Europe; le Moulin aux Ecrevisses where Jean Pierre Geeraert raises ecrevisses, leads tours, has three rooms and serves an ecrevisses-centered meal. We started with a glass of local champagnoised wine, then a salad of alternating slices of beets and goat cheese. The ecrevisses (3 years old) came next in a tomato, cognac and white wine sauce that I wish had been more assertive but Colette thought was just right. The final dish was a clafoutis of cherries with a most delectable crust. With all that and wine but no coffee or bottled water, the bill was 82.50 E.

Repeat? Nice folks, interesting place, a toss-up.

The Rendez vous des Amis in Chamarandes near Chaumont was our next stop. It sure sounded good in the Michelin, was packed with locals and (French) tourists and had a wonderful terrace. But the positives stopped there. They have a habit, encountered in too many other provincial restaurants, of having a dizzying number of “menus” and chalkboard options. I chose a champagne plus three-course one, except they forgot the bubbly. The foie gras two ways was banal; the bloc of foie gras was like any other, anywhere and the sautéed foie gras was as tasteless as it could be without some help. Then the main; a huge piece of sweetbread that was again simply ordinary. Meanwhile, Colette was pushing around some shrimp and scallops in a vol a vent shell and mumbling. I finished with a café gourmand, a so-so coffee with five so-so desserts. Our bill = 84.50 E with one bottle of wine and one coffee.

Go. Uh huh.

The final meal was at a place called the Jardin Gourmand in Troyes, a city with an incredible amount of charm. We weren’t in the mood for any cute stuff, so after a green salad we split a chicken breast with vinegar sauce and a duck breast with cassis sauce. Both were standard issue and serviceable. The bread roll and floating island were very good, however. The amiable host made up for any need for outside entertainment. Our bill was 68 E with 1 bottle of wine, one dessert and no coffee.

Go? A few doors up was Valentino, next trip I call there in advance.