Sunday, 16 September 2012

I'm Back!



This is a (maybe several) big update(s).
We’ve been in Nice for the last week, enjoying (relatively) high temperatures and a lot of sunshine. Also good food (and bad) and some decent wine.

SATURDAY 8th September
Le Safari – this is a bit of a tourist trap in the Cours Saleya (the flower market at the edge of the old town) though lots of locals eat here too. Friends recommended it many years ago and we’ve often eaten here at Christmas. The service can be a bit off, depending on the waiter and the time of year – Christmas is good, though the food is generally good. This time, the service was pretty awful; they tried to seat us at bad tables (basically in the middle of the footpath) and the waiter was clearly not very interested in serving us. The food was good, though we’ve eaten better here. One nice touch was that it’s now possible to have half-size starters!
We ate:
Petites farcis (stuffed vegetables)
Accra (salt cod fitters)
Lapin rôti (wild rabbit roasted in a wood-burning oven over a dish of sliced potatoes, tomatoes, onions, garlic & thyme) – pretty good stuff, but the portions were very unequal in both size and content.
Mille Feuille of fraises & rhubarb (Ali).
The Fete du Port was on – a big party in the port – we wandered over for a look: fun!
SUNDAY 9th September
Hot: 30C and very sunny: time spent on the beach!
Walked to the port for dinner to L’Ane Rouge (the Red Donkey). This is a posh seafood restaurant that we’ve been trying to get to for a couple of years. Problem has been that we tend to be in Nice at Christmas, and their opening hours (and space) is limited then. Anyway, booked on Internet before we left.

The restaurant itself is very attractive with many images of L’Ane Rouge himself. Staff were courteous and helpful and completely bilingual. The service was exemplary and, though expensive, we thought it was value for money.
We ate:
Amuse: Augegine curry, olive pastry, cheese balls
Patience: Mackerel and gazpacho
Courgette flower stuffed with a chicken mousse
L’Ombrine (like cod) with a green bean salad
Roasted peach (Bob)
Lobster Salad
St Pierre (In ½ a bottle, sliced lengthways)
St Honneur (Ali)
Ch. Bellet Rosé, Côtes de Provence

More soon ...

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