Of all the restaurants we visited during our recent camping holiday in Southern Burgundy La Petite…read moreAuberge was the one that really excited my palate and captured my imagination. We ate here twice last week: on a very quiet Monday night, when we had the pleasure of a lengthy chat with the patron, and again on Friday lunchtime after a long 11km hike in the sun from our campsite at Etang sur Arroux. Both meals were thoughtfully put together, skilfully executed and beautifully presented.
The restaurant itself is in the very pretty rural village of Saint Didier sur Arroux, which is well worth a wander round before or after your meal. If the weather is good you will have the choice of eating in either the large terrace out back which is cool, shady and tastefully furnished in an eclectic rustic style or in the main dining room which has striking red walls, quirky art work and a very comfy lay out - there are plenty of cushions to soften the seating which was very welcome after a long hike in the mid-day sun. There is a bar area as you enter the restaurant which a nice spot to take your post meal cafe and digestif it's also good for easy access to the small front terrace if you fancy a cheeky puff.
In terms of style and design La Petite Auberge is probably considered a little bit cutting edge, and certainly different, for this area of rural Southern Burgundy where the traditional way of doing things still seems to be deep in the genes. However, while not knocking the "old ways", La Petite Auberge worked really well for me and I liked their "modern" French approach to design and cooking a lot. Rather than "throwing the baby out with the bathwater" this is a very successful attempt to bring some tried and tested culinary traditions a little bit more up to date.
There are a small number of choices on the a la carte section of the menu, but the whole point of this restaurant for me was the "menu selon inspiration du patron" which is available as a three or four plat selection (actually four or five as you will also be getting a very tasty cheese plat gratis). At lunchtime this is cut down to a two or three plat selection with a significant reduction in the price. Before committing to this mystery trip you will be asked if you have any particular food hates to ensure you are not faced with anything you really cannot stomach.
These guys put together a lovely journey through your meal and on both of our visits all of our dishes were pretty damn fine. It's difficult to pick anything out in particular because each meal is a little like a book unfolding before you: lovely, perfectly cooked pink duck, great chicken in a creamy sauce with baby onions, avocado and crab mousse with grapefruit, desserts to die for .... I could go on but I'm writing this on a train and making myself very hungry.
Also worth a mention is the bread which is a nice change from the standard baguette you will be offered in most restaurants. This is a brown bread which has a nice crisp crust and is light and moist but quite substantial. We were not the only folk who appreciated it as the elderly French couple dining next to us made a point of praising the quality of the loaf I was pleased, and a little relieved, to find it was from the bakery in Etang which I had chosen to frequent.
We found plenty of good stuff to drink from the small but we'll edited wine list which had a number of selections from outside the Burgundy region, many of which are available by the half bottle. The aperitif of elderflower cordial with cremant was particularly good and if you want to keep the bill manageable the house White went down very well at a reasonable price. If you like a digestif at the end of your meal I would recommend trying a glass of the local Prunelle.
Run by a very charming, long in exile but recently returned, Frenchman and his lovely wife who hails from Berlin they are very well supported by their young enthusiastic local chef. You will find a very friendly atmosphere with a warm welcome at La Petite Auberge. We were somewhat sad to leave late on Friday afternoon to begin the long hike home.
Highly recommended.
