Sunday 30 August 2015

Boqueria, Acre Lane, south London

Images from Boqueria's web site
With a lively and youthful vibe, the Brixton branch of Boqueria has buzz. It's downstairs room, with clean lines and big skylights, strikes the right balance between comfort and cool. But the tapas (around a fiver a dish) is hit and miss. The Spanish omelette may be overcooked, while the chorizo in cider lacks a kick and the king prawns may have been on dry land too long. The spinach in creamy cheese with pine nuts and raisins is better, while the broken eggs with chorizo, ham, cheese and potatoes (Huevos rotos con Jamón Ibérico y sobrasada) is delicious, if a tad unhealthy. The rosé wine can taste too much like sherry, while the service can be incoherent - the food might arrive before your drinks and you may have to remind the staff what you ordered. There are better places to eat in Brixton and Clapham. 6/10

Tuesday 11 August 2015

L'Idee, Place du Petit Marche, Beaugency, France



A fairly smart and slightly pretentious restaurant, L'Idee serves modern French cuisine in two dining rooms and on an outdoor terrace in a small square in the heart of Beaugency. In the evening, you can get an elaborate and beautifully-presented three course meal for less than 25 euros from a menu offering a couple of options per course. The starter might be duck pate, served with toast and salad, while your main might be a precisely-cooked fillet of white fish, served with a vegetable rice, and doused in a creamy sauce. The deserts are lavish and rich - one option is to sample three different chocolate creations. Although the food is a treat for the eyes and the stomach, the dishes can take an incredibly long time to arrive. On a busy summer evening, you may end up waiting almost an hour between your starter and your main course. That gives you plenty of time to admire the 19th century cast iron market hall next door. L'Idee is a place for a patient gourmet. 7/10

Monday 10 August 2015

Hostellerie de L'Ecu de Bretagne, Beaugency, France


In the heart of the historic town of Beaugency, the Hostellerie de L'Ecu de Bretagne is well placed for exploring this leisurely section of the Loire either on bike or on foot. Although the car park in the central courtyard is a bit unsightly, the bedrooms are both elegant and characterful, mixing ageing timbers and vintage furniture with mod-cons, such as flat-screen televisions, air conditioning and decent Wi-Fi. Tucked away at the back, the lush well-kept garden has a surprisingly large swimming pool, comfortable loungers and a trampoline. Although the in-house breakfast is pricey, there are several good boulangeries and coffee bars nearby. The Hostellerie de L'Ecu de Bretagne is a comfortable and relaxing place to chill for a few days. 7/10

Sunday 9 August 2015

Beaugency, Loiret, France


A sleepy settlement on the banks of the Loire, Beaugency is known for its elongated medieval stone bridge complete with 23 arches. Legend has it that this broad bridge was built by the devil in exchange for a soul (apparently he was given the soul of a cat). The rest of the town, which is sprinkled with historic buildings and decorated with flowers, is also well worth a wander. 

The Château of Chambord, Loir-et-Cher, France,


A truly monumental chateau standing in very expansive grounds,  Chambord is a sprawling testament to the extraordinary power and wealth of the French monarchy during the Renaissance. The lengthy drive through the heavily-forested walled grounds is impressive enough, but your first sight of this 440-room building will stop you in your tracks. Built in the sixteenth century to serve as a hunting lodge for Francis I, Chambord is reputed to be the largest of the many chateaux in the Loire valley. Surrounded by a moat, the chateau's central cluster of ornate towers and 365 chimneys rise from a vast partially fortified building, which sits on a pancake-flat plain. Once you have taken in the long view, it is worth joining the queues to purchase an entrance ticket to have a wander around inside. 

La Crep'Zeria, Rue du Pont, Beaugency, France


With outdoor tables on a pretty old street lined with waterways, La Crep'Zeria is a basic creperie serving simple fare and cheap, coarse wine. Crepes cost about 10 euros, as do the pizzas and spaghetti dishes. The food is nothing to write home about, but it is good value and the staff are welcoming enough. 6/10

La Plage Municipale de Thonon, Lake Geneva, France


With broad vistas over Lake Geneva from its grassy banks, this outdoor pool complex is a pleasant and popular place to while away a steamy summer afternoon. For your 4.5 euros admission fee you get access to several swimming pools and diving boards, as well as loos and showers. You can also swim in the lake itself, but you need to negotiate the stony shoreline. Spanning three hectares, the site also has its own restaurant and bar, plus a fun 100-metre water slide (you need to buy tickets for this, but they are very cheap), volleyball court and table tennis tables. Note, men are supposed to wear swimming trunks, rather than shorts, in the pools. Busy, but not crowded, la Plage Municipale de Thonon is both picturesque and great value. 8/10

Saturday 8 August 2015

L'Etale Restaurant, Morzine, France


Even in the summer, L'Etale Restaurant is bustling. Large and central, it boasts a pretty extensive menu featuring most of the classics you would expect in the Alps. If you want something rich, tasty and filling for less than 15 euros, opt for the tartiflette. Served with a small salad, it is delicious, thanks primarily to the very strong cheese. For desert, the ice cream is very good. However, service can be patchy, while the table water may be tepid and the bread a tad hard. Still, L'Etale Restaurant's packed tables indoor and out, and buzzy atmosphere, are testament to the quality of its hearty mountain food and its reasonable prices. 7/10 

Yvoire, Lake Geneva, France


A medieval village on the banks of Lake Geneva, Yvoire is undoubtedly attractive, but also very touristy. Its crumbling stone walls and gateways enclose a distinguished chateau and a distinctive church, as well as dozens of shops, cafes and restaurants adorned with flowers. Thanks to the large car parks outside the walls, the village itself is traffic-free and a little twee.

Le Château de Ripaille, Avenue de Ripaille, Thonon-les-Bains, France

Once a castle and a monastery, partially destroyed during the French Revolution, Le Château de Ripaille was restored in 1892 by a rich industrialist and art lover, Frédéric Engel-Gros.

Friday 7 August 2015

Lac de Montriond, Haute-Savoie, France


A modest, but azure, body of water surrounded by steep green hillsides, on which trees cling precipitously, Lac de Montriond attracts scores of sunbathers in the summer.  Most of them cluster around the shallow outdoor pool, leaving plenty of space on the grassy banks of the lake proper. It is a very pleasant 3km walk or jog around the circumference of the Lac de Montriond. Or you can go for a swim, once you have waded through the muddy shallows. On site, there are toilets and a couple of places to eat. When temperatures rise into the thirties in the Alps, the Lac de Montriond offers a scenic reprieve, but parking can be tricky.

The Pointe des Mossettes, Chablais Alps, France


In the summer, you can park in the car park about a kilometre or so above the goat village of Les Lindarets and hike up to the Mossettes chair lift, which climbs up to the Pointe des Mossettes (2,277 metres). From this grassy mountain top, there are far-reaching views into Switzerland, as well as back into France. The walk down is quite hard on the knees, but the scenery is spectacular and you get to watch the mountain bikers hurtling down the bare ski runs.

Thursday 6 August 2015

La Chaudanne, Route de la Plagne, Morzine, France

Image from La Chaudanne's web site
One of the better value restaurants in Morzine, La Chaudanne offers a very keenly-priced Les Tranchants menu (three courses for about 22 euros) that is perfect for feeding a horde of teenagers. To start, the chicken salad is delicious and probably better for you than the other option - rabbit rillettes. For a main course, the cod fish, with basil and pistachio pesto, also hits the spot. For desert, there are several high sugar options or cheese. But if you want something relatively light, the two boules of ice cream is pretty good. In the summer, you can sit outside on the spacious terrace, surrounded by wood and off-duty mountain bikers. Service is excellent, while the table water is cold and you'll get plenty of decent bread.  A pint of fine Warsteiner beer is 6.5 euros or the extensive French wine list has bottles starting at just 13 euros. As you dine, you may be tempted to sing along with the diva crooning out pop and rock classics from the eighties. La Chaudanne delivers a good atmosphere, good food and good value. 8/10

Wednesday 5 August 2015

Summer in Morzine, Haute-Savoie, France


As well as being a well-known winter resort, the mountain town of Morzine has established itself as something of a mountain biking and outdoor sports mecca. In the middle of summer, it draws hordes of middle-aged men in their body armour, many from Britain. To gain some height, they sling their bikes on special contraptions on the side of chairlifts and then come charging down the trails, which are lined by lush grassy slopes or dense coniferous woodland. There are also zipwires, good walking, road biking and white water rafting in the vicinity. After burning through the calories, you'll find dozens of reasonably-priced (by ski resort standards) restaurants, cafes and bars on Morzine's two main thoroughfares. In the centre of the town, there are some pleasant pedestrianised areas, complete with modern sculptures, vintage lampposts and baskets of flowers. And on some days, a large street market camps  in the car park near the tourist office. By Alpine's standards, Morzine's altitude of 1,000 metres is quite low, but its lift systems and road network link with the higher modern resort of Avoriaz.

Tuesday 4 August 2015

La Vieille Auberge restaurant, Souillac, The Dordogne, France


Serving beautifully presented local French cuisine, La Vieille Auberge houses a traditional hotel restaurant with a surprising amount of flair. Although the two dining rooms tend to be pretty full, the food overshadows the ambiance - the neutral decor is elegant, but unremarkable, while the table cloths are white, crisp and conservative. If you are hungry, the four course Menu Tradition (36 euros) begins with an amuse bouche, such as cold carrot and fennel soup. You then get to choose from several starters, main courses and deserts.  Among the starters, the parmesan biscuit, served with a creamy cheese, is very salty and full of flavour.  For a main, the saddle of lamb is a little fatty, but is served with a fine vegetable cake. The duck breast, skewed and resting on young carrots swimming in a red wine and shallot sauce, is also rich and succulent.

The Dordogne Valley, Inntravel cycling holiday, France


One of a dozen or so cycling tours organised by the "slow holiday" company Inntravel, this seven day jaunt around the Dordogne Valley makes for a fairly challenging, but rewarding, trip for a family. Inntravel sells the holiday on a half-board basis and, although the accommodation can be a bit basic, you'll be well fed each night. You collect your sturdy hybrid bikes at La Vieille Auberge in the pleasant old town of Souillac - the start and end point for a loop, potentially taking in almost 200 kilometres of hilly and picturesque French countryside. Inntravel provides excellent and extensive directions and notes, which you can store in a plastic case on your handlebars, making it easy to navigate. Your luggage is transported from hotel to hotel by taxi, but you can carry a few essentials (such as water, a raincoat and the lame puncture repair kits) in your panniers. Note, the provided locks are very skinny - bring your own. On a typical day you'll ride for about three hours (including stops), leaving time for a leisurely lunch and sightseeing, caving, canoeing down the Dordogne and whatever else takes your fancy.

Sunday 2 August 2015

Restaurant at Hotel Les Falaises, Gluges, France


The eccentric in-house restaurant of Hotel Les Falaises is a somewhat unpredictable place to eat. Primarily serving guests from the hotel, its daily changing menu features a very small selection of dishes. Rather than writing them down on paper, the gregarious waitress describes them rapidly in French, making few concessions for Anglo-Saxon diners. Prepared by the seasoned chef, the meal tends to feature sublime starters, moreish mains and dour deserts. To start, you might get five big fat king prawns or an impressive salad with cheese, walnuts and prosciutto. Both dishes are doused in a fine dressing.

Canoeing on the Dordogne, France

At Gluges, you can hire a canoe or a kayak for the trip down to Creysse (6km, one hour), St. Sozy (10km, two hours) or go even further.  Although you are supposed to be drifting with the current,  the Dordogne can be very dozy in this stretch and you may have to paddle fairly hard to ensure you are in time for your minibus trip back.  As it winds its way past rocky crevasses and shady woodland, the river is both picturesque and peaceful. In the shallow, slow moving water, there is virtually no chance of capsizing unless you want to mess about. In any case, you are issued with lifejackets and you can hire a waterproof drum for your valuables. Costing about 15 euros for an adult for the two hour trip, canoeing on the Dordogne is very pleasant way to spend a summer afternoon.

Martel, The Lot, France



Known as the town of seven towers, Martel has a harmonious and impressive Medieval stone core clustered around the Place des Consuls with its eighteenth century covered market. Overlooking this handsome structure with its intricate timber roof are some stately stone buildings, including the surprisingly grand Hotel de La Raymondie. If you wander around the atmospheric streets, you'll find some traditional boulangeries, cafes and brasseries, mixed in with a handful of more arty shops aimed at affluent tourists.  As well as its seven historic towers, Martel still has a some of its original fortified gateways, as well as a rather austere and imposing church with a 40 metre bell tower.

Gluges, The Lot, France


A partially-abandoned village on the banks of the Dordogne, Gluges nestles below some crumbling old houses built into the face of an looming cliff. There is also a striking church, with a soaring bell tower and windows funded by Edith Piaf, some fine stone houses with steep pitched red-tiled roofs, a campsite and a pleasant spot where you can paddle in the river or hire a canoe.

Hotel Les Falaises, Gluges, France


In the shadow of a towering rock face in the crumbling hamlet of Gluges on the banks of the Dordogne, Hotel Les Falaises is a rambling and quirky establishment. Although they are clean and there is a fair bit of space, the eclectically-decorated bedrooms and communal areas feel like they belong in a student house dating from the 1980s. Painted bright orange, some of the walls are plastered with an artex swirl effect! Like the rest of the hotel, breakfast is fairly basic, featuring okay bread, croissants, jam, cereals, orange juice and coffee.  Still some of the bedrooms have pleasant balconies and there is WiFi.  Moreover, the terrace, overlooking a leafy garden, is well equipped with comfortable furniture (a good place to sip a beer from the bar) and there is a large, if rather stark, swimming pool about fifty yards from the main house.  The elderly staff are slightly eccentric, but are helpful enough. An old-school French establishment, Hotel Les Falaises is well placed for both cycling and canoeing in a fine part of France. 6/10

Saturday 1 August 2015

Chateau de Castelnau-Bretenoux, Lieu-dit Castelnau, Prudhomat, France


An imposing, yet beautiful, medieval fortress perched on a rocky buttress, Chateau de Castelnau-Bretenoux gives off a golden glow as it bathes in the Dordogne's summer sun.  Although it dates from the twelfth century, much of the castle (and the village it shelters) remains intact following restoration work by Jean Moulierat, an opera singer, towards the end of the nineteenth century. You can park your bike or car below the panoramic restaurant and hike up the steep slope to the main gates. At this point, you step back in time, surrounded by the weathered stone ramparts, grassy moat, elegant circular towers and formidable keep.  Attracting only a trickle of visitors, Chateau de Castelnau-Bretenoux makes it is easy to lose yourself in another, more earthy, century.

Loubressac, the Lot, France


One of several Les Plus Beaux Villages de France at the north end of the Lot, the fortified hamlet of Loubressac is best approached by bike on the D118, which climbs steadily up through beautiful countryside. At the top you are rewarded with sweeping views across to the golden Chateau de Castelnau-Bretenoux perched on a hill in the wide La Bave valley. Once you have admired the landscape, you can wander round the elegant period architecture in Loubressac itself. The well kept, traditional Quercy-style houses with steep tiled roofs, a Romanesque church and a fifteen century chateau are protected by stone walls with intact gateways and wrought iron balconies decorated with flowers. You'll also find one or two restaurant-bars, plus a rather pricey village shop.

Carennac, the Lot, France


A jumble of fine stone buildings dating from the Middle Ages on a promontory overlooking the Dordogne, Carennac is a pleasant place for a pit stop for cyclists touring the Lot. After you have had a wander round, there are a couple of cafes for a drink or an ice cream.

The Relais de Castelnau, Loubressac, the Lot, France



The Relais de Castelnau hasn't made the best of its enviable location. Although all the bedrooms boast captivating views north east across the lush countryside in the La Bave valley, the hotel has the air of a tired mid-market chain that you might find on the outskirts of a big city. Moreover, the swimming pool is cramped, while the tables on the terrace have to be tightly packed to accommodate the scores of guests at breakfast or dinner.  The rooms are also compact and have been furnished on a tight budget, while the WiFi is patchy. Still, you will get a fridge and there is a tennis court.  In the morning, you might have to weave your way though coach loads of pensioners to get to the passable breakfast buffet. Given the commanding view from its location on the edge of a picturesque village, the Relais de Castelnau probably should have gone upmarket, building spacious rooms with balconies, rather than trying to cram in lots of punters. 6/10