gastronomic delights of France: oysters!

Tags

cancale, food, france, oysters, travel

the town of Cancale, just 15kms east of St-Malo, is known for its oysters. apparently the oyster farms produce about 25 000 tons each year. an oyster market (le marché aux huîtres) by the water is open daily.

on the day we arrived in Cancale, we managed to squeeze in a stop to the market 15 mins before the 6pm closing. you can buy oysters (by the half dozen or dozen) at really good prices from the handful of stalls, and pay 0.50€ extra to have them shucked for eating, and another 0.50€ for lemon if you desire.

trying the wild ones (savauges) revealed

gastronomic delights of France: sumptuous seafood

Tags

france, seafood, st-malo

besides trying the amazing Bordier butter, the stop in St-Malo also gave us the opportunity to eat some fresh seafood.

another recommendation from the same trusted source who told me to eat fouées in the Loire valley, the seafood restaurant L’Atre, in Saint-Servan (adjacent to the port of St-Malo, technically part of the town i think, and a less than 10 minute cab ride away) was just the spot to try.

my friend and i got a seafood platter, with more than enough food for us. with no condiments other than lemon, it was a perfect opportunity to really taste the oysters, periwinkles, conch shells, and crab. though we definitely worked for our dinner, it was a truly lovely evening, washed down with some chablis that went well with our meal.

there are definitely other places in the area that one can have seafood, but the service and quality at L’Atre were fantastic.  because this recommendation was so great, i didn’t do much comparison of pricing with other restaurants.  i did see on their website that they offered a lunch special for 15€ (except on Sundays), which is a fantastic deal.

the seafood consumption doesn’t end here my friends…stay tuned for the next post! :)