It feels nice to be back in the glorious sunshine of the Cote d’Azur; even though I did very much enjoy my short trip to a wintery Finland. A weekend packed full of programme was waiting for me upon my return; our friends Olivier, Rafaelle and Isabelle were coming over from Paris for a weekend break (Ollie’s parents have a flat in beautiful Greolieres, not too far from where we live), and a restaurant visit with Sandra and Stephane was also planned for Saturday.
We decided to meet up with Ollie, Isa and Rafa for dinner in Antibes on Friday night. After some surfing on the ‘net our decision fell upon a restaurant on the edge of the old town, called Le Temps des Mets. Great to catch up with our good friends from our days in the UK again; it sadly seems that we meet up more and more rarely (I suppose that’s the way it goes…). Foolishly, I volunteered to taste the wine, and after going though all the motions one is supposed to go through (observing the colour of the wine, scenting the wine, and finally tasting it) announced that the wine was perfectly fine. Much to my surprise, my dear French friends found the wine rather less acceptable than me, and asked for a new bottle. (being Finnish, I suppose my criteria for what constitutes a good wine are lower than for French people – the presence of alcohol is perhaps enough?). The next two bottles went down a lot better than the first one (admittedly they did taste better…), as did the food. The waitress was also very entertaining. So all in all, we had a very pleasant evening, and left the restaurant as very happy customers.
On Saturday, it was time for our luxury lunch with Sandra and Stephane. The venue selected for the occasion was a veritable culinary institution: Le Bastide de Saint Antoine, located in Grasse, awarded with no less than two Michelin stars. They have a very good value lunch (“only” 59 euros for a three-course menu), hence we decided lunch was a better choice than dinner (the dinner menu is a bit heavier on the wallet at 150 euros…). Anyways; the place certainly didn’t disappoint. The restaurant, paired up with a luxury hotel is a veritable mansion; with lush gardens and offering great views over the Cote d’Azur. The decoration of the restaurant is for sure impressive, but not really my cup of tea (I found it an uncomfortable mixture of the modern and the traditional).
But the reason one comes to this place is, of course, the food. And as far as the culinary side is concerned, I have no complaints. After some olive oil (produced at the premises, apparently) tasting, and some nice “amuse-bouches”, I attacked the starter (lobster and prawns with a risotto), an absolute delight. The main course was definitely something to write home about as well; this time I had some deer with potatoes and cauliflower (which I normally strongly dislike – didn’t even realize it was in my plate this time – until I checked the menu on-line afterwards).
And to finish off, I had the Moelleux de Châtaigne tiède, coulant de Marron, glace Chocolat. Again, absolutely succulent. No complaints about the wine either; we eventually (once we found one with a price in the 2-digit price range) went for a red Cote de Provence (nice to go local). Stephane did the tasting this time (I insisted, after last night’s humiliating wine tasting experience). Mr Chibois; the chef, even came over for a brief chat (the proof is in the photo, see for yourself!). All in all, I would say the meal was worth every penny (the final bill finished under the 100 Euro mark per person, including wine, coffee and digestive). Having said that, not the sort of thing we’ll be doing every weekend ;-).
I’m definitely looking forward to the next restaurant visit with Sandra & Stephane – we have yet to be disappointed!
We decided to meet up with Ollie, Isa and Rafa for dinner in Antibes on Friday night. After some surfing on the ‘net our decision fell upon a restaurant on the edge of the old town, called Le Temps des Mets. Great to catch up with our good friends from our days in the UK again; it sadly seems that we meet up more and more rarely (I suppose that’s the way it goes…). Foolishly, I volunteered to taste the wine, and after going though all the motions one is supposed to go through (observing the colour of the wine, scenting the wine, and finally tasting it) announced that the wine was perfectly fine. Much to my surprise, my dear French friends found the wine rather less acceptable than me, and asked for a new bottle. (being Finnish, I suppose my criteria for what constitutes a good wine are lower than for French people – the presence of alcohol is perhaps enough?). The next two bottles went down a lot better than the first one (admittedly they did taste better…), as did the food. The waitress was also very entertaining. So all in all, we had a very pleasant evening, and left the restaurant as very happy customers.
On Saturday, it was time for our luxury lunch with Sandra and Stephane. The venue selected for the occasion was a veritable culinary institution: Le Bastide de Saint Antoine, located in Grasse, awarded with no less than two Michelin stars. They have a very good value lunch (“only” 59 euros for a three-course menu), hence we decided lunch was a better choice than dinner (the dinner menu is a bit heavier on the wallet at 150 euros…). Anyways; the place certainly didn’t disappoint. The restaurant, paired up with a luxury hotel is a veritable mansion; with lush gardens and offering great views over the Cote d’Azur. The decoration of the restaurant is for sure impressive, but not really my cup of tea (I found it an uncomfortable mixture of the modern and the traditional).
But the reason one comes to this place is, of course, the food. And as far as the culinary side is concerned, I have no complaints. After some olive oil (produced at the premises, apparently) tasting, and some nice “amuse-bouches”, I attacked the starter (lobster and prawns with a risotto), an absolute delight. The main course was definitely something to write home about as well; this time I had some deer with potatoes and cauliflower (which I normally strongly dislike – didn’t even realize it was in my plate this time – until I checked the menu on-line afterwards). 
And to finish off, I had the Moelleux de Châtaigne tiède, coulant de Marron, glace Chocolat. Again, absolutely succulent. No complaints about the wine either; we eventually (once we found one with a price in the 2-digit price range) went for a red Cote de Provence (nice to go local). Stephane did the tasting this time (I insisted, after last night’s humiliating wine tasting experience). Mr Chibois; the chef, even came over for a brief chat (the proof is in the photo, see for yourself!). All in all, I would say the meal was worth every penny (the final bill finished under the 100 Euro mark per person, including wine, coffee and digestive). Having said that, not the sort of thing we’ll be doing every weekend ;-).I’m definitely looking forward to the next restaurant visit with Sandra & Stephane – we have yet to be disappointed!
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