Les Vieux Murs

Back from Antibes, and I wanted to share a new favorite seaside restaurant with all of you. I’ve been wanting to go to Les Vieux Murs (the Old Walls) for a long time – it always looked cozily lit and busy with people enjoying good conversations.

It proved to be all that and an exciting, delicious and creative food destination. When I say creative, I mean that the food was surprising and interesting but not too experimental  – it was still just classically good.

My French is far from great but I have to say that my gastronomical term dictionary is much better than anything else I know (somewhat aided by my Scribo), which is why it was funny to have the staff addressing me at the table when describing the food. I am sure they picked up on the fact that I was trying to take ‘covert’ pictures of every dish.

Everything was simply delicious. A meal I would happily have again (note that the ‘gourmets’ tasting menu changes weekly).

My favorite course, surprisingly enough, was the appetizer – it was called asparagus ‘marmelade’ and was a good-sized salad plate layered with perfectly tender leeks, asparagus (both shaved and pureed), baby greens and parmesan dressed with a light vinaigrette, chives, parmesan chips and shaved truffle.

My fellow diners had foie gras with a sweet nuts flan and a foie gras terrine with pear chutney.

The middle course was a melt-in-your-mouth truffle gnocchi (which changes according to the season) with a parmesan foam and a heady truffle/mushroom reduction.

For main course I had a crispy skin duck with a parsnip puree (with what tasted like, a pound of butter), an almost transparent chanterelle ravioli and chanterelle sauce with a tiny bit of parsley puree.

My fellow diners really enjoyed their beef Rossini (with mashed potatoes and Pommard red wine sauce) and local sea bass prepared with roasted artichoke, a divine artichoke puree and a light anchovy sauce. The fish dish had really pronounced but refined local Niçoise flavor.

For dessert there was a selection of petit fours that seemed to be almond themed – chocolate almonds, macarons and crispy almond cookies – as well as baba au rhum with a generous dollop of whipped cream and crispy bon bons and an even more generous pouring of the actual rum, and a beautiful coconut-mango layered mousse. Both were served with a little jug of blackcurrant coulis on the side.

I almost wish they didn’t change the menu so much – although I love its seasonality – because I want to do that all over again.

Les Vieux Murs

25, Prom. Amiral de Grasse – 06600 Antibes – France
Tél. : + 33 (0)4 93 34 06 73 – Fax : + 33 (0)4 93 34 81 08

E-Mail : contact@lesvieuxmurs.com

More to come this week, including:

• more travel & food
• sandwiches that will make you hungry just by looking at them
• Our Friday night cooking experiments (there are hopes of soy-marinated pork and oat-baked pear-comte dessert)