Gard/Ardeche

[Busboy]

It looks as though, if the stars remain aligned, the Busboys will spend a couple of days feasting on violets, socca and pizza four de bois in Nice, head west, take a right turn at La Pont du Gard and try to spend a week in a gite somewhere northern Gard or southern Ardeche, the last week of July. Picture (if you know the area) an arc with a 60km radius centered on Pont St. Esprit, roughly where the Ardeche and the Rhone come together.

Unfortunately, once you get west of the Rhone, the quality and quantity of available information seems to drop significantly. Equally unfortunately, the high-season timing of the trip means that we have to move quickly before all the good gites are got. Any information or guidance, no matter how vague or old, would be appreciated as we try to find a good spot to land for a week.

We know that this is not Michelin-starred country and, at any rate, prefer inexpensive local cafes and our own cooking for this part of the trip. But the location of good market towns (particularly Saturday or Sunday markets, so we can stock up on arrival) friendly bistrots, wine co-ops, the odd fromagerie -- anything that will help us triangulate through new (for us) territory would be appreciated. Since we will likely do some day-tripping, recommending a bistro in one place and boulangerie 30km away is fine. We can get by in French, and have no problem with "rustic" accommodations (so long as there's a usable kitchen) so off-the-beaten-track suggestions are particularly welcome.

Thanks.

[cigalechanta]

http://www.rent-a-holiday-home-in-france.i.../gite3931_3.htm

[Busboy]

http://www.rent-a-holiday-home-in-france.i.../gite3931_3.htm

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Thanks for this.

One of the problems we're having is we can't tell if one town/village is more desireable for whatever reason than the other. Does Uzes have a better market than Ales, for example, or is Vallon Pont-d'Arc the place to be? It seems as if every square inch of Provence has been documented, but there's not nearly as much information about the country further west.

[cigalechanta]

http://www.gite-ardeche.com/dine.html

Don't know aboutAles but Uzes has a wonderful overflowing market.

Edited January 6, 2006 by cigalechanta (log)

[Margaret Pilgrim]

We spend a fair amount of time in the village of Barjac. It is located north of Ales, about an hour northwest of the Avignon TGV. From Barjac we have driven the Ardeche Gorges, to Uzes, Ales, Nimes. We have even driven back across the Rhone to Paradou (south of St. Remy) for lunch at the Bistrot. Barjac is a sweet village with several butchers, boulangers, wine cave, several very reasonable restaurants. Both practical and chic shops; fabulous hardware store. Friday market is lively. Boules daily. Music fests often.

Here is a cute place.

Here is another that is in the center of the village.

This place is also in the heart of the village.

It is hard to tell how complete the cooking facilities are in these gites/apartments, but you could email for more detailed information.

Edited January 6, 2006 by Margaret Pilgrim (log)

[Busboy]

We spend a fair amount of time in the village of Barjac.  It is located north of Ales, about an hour northwest of the Avignon TGV.  From Barjac we have driven the Ardeche Gorges, to Uzes, Ales, Nimes.  We have even driven back across the Rhone to Paradou (south of St. Remy) for lunch at the Bistrot.  Barjac is a sweet village with several butchers, boulangers, wine cave, several very reasonable restaurants.  Both practical and chic shops; fabulous hardware store.  Friday market is lively. Boules daily.  Music fests often.

Here is a cute place.

Here is another that is in the center of the village. 

This place is also in the heart of the village.

It is hard to tell how complete the cooking facilities are in these gites/apartments, but you could email for more detailed information.

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Thanks. We are looking in the Barjac area now, as well as a little north of the river in Ardeche proper, having spent the weekend googling extensively.

Does anyone know of any guides to market days in the northern Gard southern Ardeche area?

Thanks.

[menton1]

The most reliable association for this type of accommodation, I have found, is the"Gites de France" group with their ears of corn ratings. I, personally only choose 3 or 4 ears. (even those are a bargain) We mostly use this to find bed-and-breakfast type inns, particularly ones that serve a "Table d'hote" where the hosts serve dinner in their home to you, the other guests, and themselves at a community table. It's usually an experience of a lifetime. (In French, "Chambres d'Hotes")

The hosts at these type places can also be a wonderful source of tourist information, much more opinionated than the typical OT, which is good. The OTs play down the middle, which sometimes is not what you want to hear. Like the better markets, for example.

Here is the Ardèche site for Gites-de-France:

http://www.ardeche-holidays.com/

edited to add:

You usually need to contact the individual Offices de Tourisme in the towns to find out about markets. They can tell you of all the markets in a few-kilometer radius. The CDT for the whole department is located in the prefecture of Privas. They can probably give you a list of all the markets in the department.

Mailing address for the CDT:

4, cours de Palais

07000 Privas

Tel 04 75 64 04 66

Edited January 9, 2006 by menton1 (log)

[Abra]

We had lunch in Barjac yesterday, at the restaurant of the Hotel du Centre, right on the main street where the excellent Friday market was wrapping up. While it's not a big wow, it was a pretty decent country-style meal. The menu for 14.50 Euros brought me an entrée of the world's largest serving of soupe de poisson

in a tureen that would have happily served three, and with a really nice spicy rouille. My husband had an excellent charcuterie plate, and we were looking forward to our plats. Sadly, they didn't quite live up to the entrées, with my civet de lievre being tasty but dry, and his escalopes de volaille arriving nicely charred and sauced, but somewhat underseasoned. And if you've never been served a dessert in a Mickey Mouse glass, just look here.

So, all in all, we'll keep trying other places in Barjac, which is a charming town with a lovely market to which we're sure to return. But I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this place if you're just looking for simple decent food at a very fair price.

[Abra]

So if you really want to be lost in the deep countryside and happen upon a little gem, try La Bruyerette. That's the name of the hamlet, and the name of the restaurant, since it's the only business there. They raise all sorts of poultry and serve them at their charming small restaurant. The dinner menu is at 23 Euros and offers two or three choices per course, most poultry-based. The owners and servers are especialy warm and friendly, I can't imagine that tourists find them very often, and the food is deliciously rustic and homey. La Bruyerette is a bit northwest of Uzès, if you happen to be in that area. Pictures of the restaurant and our menu are here.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

So if you really want to be lost in the deep countryside and happen upon a little gem, try La Bruyerette.  That's the name of the hamlet, and the name of the restaurant, since it's the only business there.  They raise all sorts of poultry and serve them at their charming small restaurant.  The dinner menu is at 23 Euros and offers two or three choices per course, most poultry-based.  The owners and servers are especialy warm and friendly, I can't imagine that tourists find them very often, and the food is deliciously rustic and homey.  La Bruyerette is a bit northwest of Uzès, if you happen to be in that area.  Pictures of the restaurant and our menu are here.

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I've found it! Thanks for this super lead. Not only is it exactly the kind of place we hope for in the country, its on our frequent route.

In a similar vein is Restaurant Auberge des Ribes Hautes, 3 km north of Barjac just off the route de Vallon Pont d'Arc. (At 2km, start looking for a small sign on the right hand side of the road; the auberge is up the hill on Chemin de Ribaute.) It is a duck farm and offers canard in all its fashions. Adorable people, abundant and delicious plates. Indoor and outdoor seating. I would definitely call ahead for openings and hours.

04.66.24.57.61

[Dave Hatfield]

Really up in the heart of the Ardeche is the town of Les Vans. Its been a few years since we were there, but it used to have a good market and several OK restaurants. I still have fond memories of a wonderful seafood choucroute that I had there.

a good link for gites is: www holidaylettings.co.uk. They have a wide selection.

Be aware that most gites are let on a Saturday to Saturday basis. Since you are in almost peak season it may be difficult to get other dates.

Gorgeous country side around there with great walking.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

a good link for gites is: www holidaylettings.co.uk. They have a wide selection.

Be aware that most gites are let on a Saturday to Saturday basis. Since you are in almost peak season it may be difficult to get other dates.

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We have had much success in writing owners that we really wanted to stay in their properties but only wanted them for " x days, from y to z". Most times they respond with an adjusted weekly rate and consent to the days that we need. Worth a try...

[Dave Hatfield]

a good link for gites is: www holidaylettings.co.uk. They have a wide selection.

Be aware that most gites are let on a Saturday to Saturday basis. Since you are in almost peak season it may be difficult to get other dates.

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We have had much success in writing owners that we really wanted to stay in their properties but only wanted them for " x days, from y to z". Most times they respond with an adjusted weekly rate and consent to the days that we need. Worth a try...

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Agreed, its worth a try. As a gite owner, however, I can say that it very much depends upon how booking are are going. If they're good then getting anything other than the 'standard' week may be tough.

If you want a few days within a Saturday to Saturday span then most people will be Ok with that & offer a deal. If, however, you want to span the weekend (Thursday to Monday for instance) its a different story as you are potentially putting two full week rentals at risk.

It certainly doesn't hurt to try. Obviously a last minute inquiry stands a better chance, but that's hard on the nerves.

Good luck in any case.