Eating out

IN TOWN

There are many small restaurants near the house — from an authentic pizza restaurant (one of our favourites) to tiny places with superb views overlooking the valley with local specialities like pounti (an entrée made with prunes, bacon, chard, onions, eggs, cream, and more), aligot (a sort of mashed potato dripping with local Cantal cheese), Le Puy lentils, plus magret de canard (duck breast), quails, and wonderful kidneys at Chez Geneviève. They have more conventional French dishes too!

OUT OF TOWN

There are several Auberges on the edge of town. The House Book will give you ideas. Sunday lunch is the most important meal of the week and that is when you will observe the French eating everywhere, both in and out of town.

Chateau de Varillettes offers superb dining in a wonderful setting. Menus start at €18 for 3 courses. You dine in the lovely old vaulted kitchens.

Eating in

THE MARKET

Select local produce from the wonderful Saturday market. You'll find an array of:

• • • locally-grown fruit and vegetables
    • home-made sausages
    • cheeses
    • local pork and veal
    • fresh free-range poultry

THE SHOPS—a gourmet's paradise just around the corner

These usually open between 7.00 am (bread) and 8.00 am, and stay open until around 7.00 pm. They have a 2-hour lunch break from 12 noon to 2.00 pm.

La boulangerie (the bakery)

• • the most important shop in France
    • mouthwatering croissants, baguettes, and a range of other breads
    • freshly-baked quiches (a must for lunch with that salad you bought from the market)
    • pastries: éclairs, rum babas, fruit tarts, millefeuille, and other waistline challenges
    • home-made chocolates

La boucherie (the butcher)

• • • home-made pâté and sausages
    • take-away shepherd's pie
    • spit-roasted beef and chickens

La poissonnerie (the fish shop)

• • the best I've come across …
    • try the small brown trout (so cheap — and delicious fried in butter with sliced almonds)
    • seafood: mussels, prawns
    • morue (cod)
    be adventurous and try other deep-cold-water fish that I have never seen before

Les charcuteries (delicatessens)

Here you can select ready-prepared take-away meals like daubes, cassoulets, confit d'oie (goose), and interesting salads. There are sausages, cheeses, cooked meats, and a wonderful array of olives. Inhale the delicious odour of roasting pork, chicken, or beef outside the charcuterie near the house.

Petit Casino supermarket

This little shop is just round the corner, so if you run out of an essential ingredient for your cooking, you can dash out for anything … wine, cheeses, yoghurt, milk, jams, biscuits, fruit, garlic, and vegetables, as well as washing powders. Leaf tea is available at Téo close by.

Wine

Saint-Flour is too high to grow its own vin du pays so best buys are from the Petit Casino supermarket — look for the Club des Sommeliers label. We like white wine from Alsace and red wine from almost anywhere, including Morocco! Wine is also available from the local delicatessens and the Intermarché supermarket.

Intermarché supermarket

10 minutes' walk from the house: a large supermarket with all the usual foods and wine, plus clothes, household goods, china, etc. NB: cheap petrol.