While we originally planned on eating at a Moroccan restaurant in Theix (and had it reserved with…read moreconfirmation from the chef), it was closed upon arrival and we had to come up with another plan. It was coming on 1 pm and everyone in our party was pretty hungry. AT's sister decided to go to Vannes and after a bit of a parking fiasco, our group of eight assembled outside of Le Gavroche, ready to feast. Maybe I am just a novice to French dining, but every time I go to a new restaurant, I'm left feeling over-the-moon about it and this happened after having lunch here. Service was nice enough, though our server wasn't the warmest person I had ever encountered. We all looked over the menu and saw that there were combinations broken out into four different price levels (3 normal price levels for lunch or dinner and 1 weekday lunch formula). Knowing that I wouldn't see the tab because of the immense hospitality that AT's family showed me, I knew I would pick the least expensive option (which was part of the weekday lunch formula with the option to have either appetizer and entrée or entrée and dessert), no matter what. But as I looked over my options, I found exactly what I wanted in that section anyway. You see, I am kinda "American" when it comes to French food. I won't eat everything and I don't love gamey cold cuts, duck, foie gras, or pungent cheeses. Yeah... So I always declined anything that had these items and was sort of tame with what I ate. Here I ended up with a piece of beef with a peppercorn sauce (pièce de bœuf, sauce poivre) with mashed potatoes and a carrot purée. I ordered my steak medium but when it came out it looked to be medium rare. Being around carnivorous people who liked to eat beef as bloody as possible, I ate mine like a champ with perhaps just one wince. The smooth taters were quite good but what I really enjoyed was the slightly sweet carrot purée, which was entirely unlike mashed sweet potatoes and maybe better. As a side note, the peppercorn sauce was probably made with green peppercorns, which lent a slightly strange flavor to it, eliciting multiple comments from around my table (lots of us ordered this dish) that the sauce had subtle soap hints. If you are sensitive to "different" flavors, you may want to skip this dish and go on to the one I talk about next. AT got the Suprême de poulet à la basquaise (chicken basque) dish and when I got a bit of his, I actually envied him for his meal. It was spectacular. Normally, I pick chicken dishes and he goes for red meat but we switched it up and he made the better choice. He actually cooks this dish very well but we both decided that Le Gavroche's version was a strong contender. He got the Salade Landaise au foie gras as an appetizer and really enjoyed it, though I cannot comment on it. Next up! Since I skipped the appetizer, I was entitled to a dessert and everyone else at the table had theirs included too. AT went with the île flottante (meringue floating on crème anglaise, another thing that he prepares skillfully) and I got the riz au lait, caramel au beurre salé (rice pudding with salted butter caramel). We were pleased to end our afternoon meal with these well-done desserts, none of them too rich or sweet. If you are in Vannes, stop by to eat some traditional French cuisine at Le Gavroche.

What a wonderful restaurant. Michelin 1 star but this chef will get a second star in the near…read morefuture. This restaurant is better than many 2 stars we have been to. My wife started with the langoustine carpaccio and I had the sardines(photo). Both were exquisite. Next was the hommard bleu (blue lobster), amazing and cooked to absolute perfection. Squab was next and again cooked perfectly and delicious. The apricot dessert was a visual delight and yummy. One of the best dinners. Reminded us of the spectacular dinner we had at Tim Raue last year.

After my disappointment with Terre et Mer for my boyfriend's birthday, I can't tell you how…read morerelieved and contented I was with our anniversary experience chez la gourmandière. Every. Single. Dish. was exquisitely flavorful, fresh, and not to mention downright beautiful. The balance of savors was truly delightful in comparison with some of the other Michelin/ Michelin-aspiring restaurants that I have tried. When dining here, I honestly felt the presence of the chef's philosophy behind and commitment to every element of each plate. From the apéritif to the dessert, I could not contain myself from smiling after each first bite. Two dishes that were particularly memorable were the dish with scallops and beets as well as the dish with a braised medallion of venison. To give you an idea of the caliber of la gourmandière, my boyfriend typically does not eat shellfish under any circumstances. But on this night, he not only ate shellfish, but enjoyed said dishes immensely. Additionally, the kouign amann that accompanied our after-dinner coffee was The Best that I have ever tasted. My only reproach is that the physical temperature of the restaurant made it a little difficult to truly appreciate the two dishes with frozen elements. However, this one detail will certainly not prevent me from returning, with pleasure, to la gourmandière. In fact, I cannot wait to bring my parents here the next time that they visit France. Thank you, to the chef, the waitstaff, the sommelier, and all involved, for an unforgettable night.

I'm just going to respectfully reserve my right to disagree. I didn't enjoy my meal as a whole…read more There were some redeeming elements, but not enough to persuade me to recommend La Table de Jeanne. As you can see in my photograph, everything looks beautifully appetizing, so don't necessarily let my review dissuade you. Today, I ordered the Colombo du cochon and the Dôme au chocolat (au lait?). For the Colombo du cochon, first let me say that the pork was perfectly cooked (they gave me a steak knife, but there was absolutely no need; so tender!). The sauce (although lacking salt) was also very good. However, the rice was undercooked, the dried fruits had absolutely no flavor, and the julienned vegetable medley just couldn't decide if it wanted to be under or over-cooked. For the Dôme au chocolat, I was really disappointed. The plate was so uncoordinated, with far too many flavors presented. There was a mini scoop of berry ice cream with cookie crumbles underneath, a dome of dark chocolate filled with berry mousse again with cookie crumbles underneath, patches of fresh strawberry, peach, kiwi, and pineapple, swaths of salted butter caramel sauce, and a powdering of chocolate powder. Too much! There was something off about the mousse. I kept tasting it to double and then triple check, but there was definitely a chemical note. I know those cans for aerating mousse batter probably don't have aerosol in them, but that was the "kind" of bitter aftertaste I was getting. One last remark about the dessert and then I'll shut up: it was definitely marked on the menu that the dome was made of "chocolate au lait" (milk chocolate). And while there's nothing wrong with switching it up from milk to dark, if the dome isn't milk chocolate (it wasn't), don't write milk on the menu.