Caroline: dinner at Montpellier's Reserve Rimbaud

 

Photos of a lovely dinner at the Reserve Rimbaud. The weather was fantastic (rare this summer) so we were able to eat on the patio.

 

Denise: Weekend in Rodez - Soulages Museum

An Aikido workshop took hubby and I to Rodez for a long weekend at the end of July. The brand-new Soulages museum had just opened last May and this was the occasion to see this much-talked about building and special exhibit.

The museum website suggests buying your ticket on-line, to avoid the long lines. Probably a good idea, but there’s another way to avoid the lines, which we discovered quite accidentally. Our first day we decided to visit the Musée Fenaille first, and upon buying our ticket (quite reasonable at 7€) we were told that it was valid one month for the other two museums in Rodez. What a fantastic deal!!!

The Fenaille Museum, built around two Renaissance époque houses, was a lovely discovery. Its 3 stories present (1) prehistoric artefacts, including the largest collection of carved menhirs in Europe, (2) items from the Gallo-Roman and Middle Ages and finally (3) pieces from the 16th century and Renaissance. See my coups-de-coeur in the photos.

The following day we were happy to skip the very long line waiting to buy tickets for the Soulages museum and walk directly into the exhibit. I haven’t been a big fan of Soulages up to now, but seeing his paintings in the right conditions makes a big difference. Black is not always black.

For lodging, I can recommend the Hotel du Midi, just two steps away from the cathedral (impressive) and very convenient to everything in the old town center. The rooms are nicely redone and the staff warm and helpful. During the weekend parking on the street is free but the hotel also has parking for a modest fee.


Warning: the choice of restaurants in Rodez is not very extensive and we had a difficult time finding restaurants open on Sunday and Monday—the tourist office would be well advised to try to encourage some restaurants to open on these days. The Pizzeria des Remparts was one that was open; on a Monday evening with pouring rain it was packed and for good reason—excellent food and very friendly and efficient staff. The half of a pizza+half of a salad combo is a great option. Other restaurants that we enjoyed were Le Cèdre, which has the best Lebanese food that I’ve ever eaten, and Ginkgo, which has a rather original concept. Second warning: Ginkgo is open only for lunch and they can “sell out” as we discovered to our dismay our 2nd visit there.



Make sure to have a working GPS if you visit Rodez. As the city is built on a hill top, almost every street is one-way!

Overall, Rodez is a good option for a get-away weekend not too far from Montpellier.

Peggy F: Cook&Eat celebrates Morocco at Viv and Alain's

Photo credits:  Peggy F

Editor:  this is the first of two postings about the August Cook&Eat celebration

Anne, Viv, Françoise, Phil

Alain and Anne

Katharine, Anne, Leslie, Melissa, Caroline

Phil and Alain

Gianluca, Jessica, Jane, Sharon, Mel

Salads, lentils, and Carrot soup (served with crushed pistachios and mint - yum!)

Cheese, fruits and Moroccan pastries

Latif, Françoise and group

On your marks........Phil and Colin race

Leslie, Caroline, Katharine, Melissa, Jane, Michel, Sharon

Katharine: A magical summer's day in Sete

Photo credits:  Katharine

Viv and Alain invited us to celebrate Cook&Eat at their home on a hill in Sete, overlooked by a  blue sky with a few puffy white clouds  and overlooking the sea - a perfect summer's day.

The theme of the day was Moroccan food, and we feasted on everyone's contributions of Moroccan salads, tagines, and the dishes included a chicken dish (from Elisabeth) that resembled pulled pork in its presentation and was absolutely delicious.

Latif, Peggy, Jessica, Sharon, Jane, Anne, Mel, Gianluca

 




Françoise (Alain and Viv's daughter) is here for the summer months - it's always a pleasure to see her.  Here she is impersonating a classical statue.....

Caroline, Leslie, Melissa, Michel

Viv and Elisabeth on the shady terrace

Sharon, Jane, Anne, Mel, Gianluca, Latif, Peggy, Jessica

Phil, Viv, Alain, Colin (grandson of Leslie and Michel), Michel

Mel, Caroline, Peggy and Melissa

Caroline - co-organiser of the day, along with Viv and Alain

Desserts - summer fruits .......

Desserts included Moroccan pastries and luscious fruits of summer - melons, peaches, reine claudes (greengages).    (Does anyone remember the film The Greengage Summer?)

..... and Moroccan pastries

Phil and Françoise

Elisabeth and Mel

It's racetime for Michel and Colin.  Colin swam all afternoon!

No, he didn't push her in the pool (we may be invited again .........)

Jane and Viv (look at that sky.....)

Michel, Alain and Phil (talking with his hands)

Were they racing or were they trying to waterbomb the swimmers?  What do you think?

A moment of repose for Françoise............

uh-oh ........bomber alert!

A big thank you from everyone to Viv and Alain for their warm and gracious hospitality and to Caroline, our Cook&Eat chair for today's happy and festive event. 

Katharine: Ah, coeur de boeuf, the tomatoes of summer

These come from Vallérargues in the Gard.

These are in the market

Caroline: Restaurant La Chassagnette, near Arles

La Chassagnette
Route du Sambuc, 13200 Arles

Phone:04 90 97 26 96

 Here are some photos from the Chassagnette. I had heard a lot about this restaurant near Arles , both from people and from food magazines and although it is a bit expensive we were not at all disappointed.

The place looks a bit empty but that is because I tried to take photos before it was full (which it eventually was) and not of occupied tables so as not to disturb the guests.