Postcard from Avignon, France: A brief restaurant sampler

Above: Perfect for the indecisive, a sampler platter at L’Epicerie Restaurant.

We didn’t stay in Avignon many days, so the list of restaurants we experienced is shorter than normal. Don’t be confused by the inclusion of two unrelated epiceries. Both have pleasant outdoor seating, but the food experience is totally different.

L’Epicerie de Ginette is more a cafe than a restaurant, but its seating on the tree-shaded plaza across the street is ideal for people-watching. Caramelized goat cheese on toast atop a salad was substantial, while a croque monsieur was spartan, a slim slice of ham and a paucity of cheese. The luscious raspberry custard tarte represented redemption. Perhaps best to stick with dessert and people-watching.

Above: L’Epicerie de Ginette

On a quiet square next to the church of Saint Pierre, L’Epicerie Restaurant offers substantial meals. The featured photo at the top of this post, a kitchen-sink platter of starters, proved more than ample to serve as all three courses. Its vegetable custards were particularly flavorful.

Roasted vegetables and fingerling potatoes accompanied a plate of moist, richly sauced chicken. Atmospheric vintage boxes and cans of groceries line the shelves of the cozy interior.

Above: L’Epicerie Restaurant

We approached Le Riad expecting it to be a sibling of a Moroccan one bearing the same name we had loved in Aix-en-Provence. Despite confusing similarities, the two are unrelated. The menu was close to identical, but the food and atmosphere were not.

We chose a pastilla once again; a salad sampler with lamb; and a lamb shank with chickpeas and couscous. The fare was fine, just not outstanding at this Le Riad. In a restaurant in the United States we’d label it great, but we’d been spoiled in Aix.

Above: Le Riad

Packed with locals, Le Vintage provided welcome shelter on a rainy afternoon. Blackboard menus change daily. For starters, we enjoyed orders of a scallop ceviche-like tartare and a salmon tartare.

Salmon “crumble” was plated with eggplant prepared two different ways and a creamy, citrusy sauce. Four-cheese ravioli perched atop a bright, fresh tomato sauce. Desserts were a mango mousse and a brownie hidden under a scoop of ice cream and rich whipped cream.

Above: Le Vintage

Technically, Maison Bronzini Bistrot is located in a town bearing a different name, Villeneuve-les-Avignon. Crowned by a sixth-century Bendictine Abbey, it does seem a world apart, more ancient than the “neuve” indicates. The peaceful village is easily accessible on foot by crossing a bridge, a short worthwhile trek.

Tempura battered zucchini blossoms arrived with a labne and citrus hummus sauce with rhubarb pickles. A beautiful and varied vegetable bowl more than met our intense cravings. No bun could withstand the assault by the toppings mounded on the expensive bistrot hamburger – a pepper confit, lettuce, guacamole, caramelized onions and a seismic eruption of cheddar sauce. Crisp, naked french fries fared far better.

Most importantly, Bronzini makes its own wines. And the outdoor tables in the vine-shaded garden create about as pleasant a setting as possible.

Above: Maison Bronzini Bistrot du Moulin

Sorry, Lamar. Those french fries were mine, as usual, mistakenly presented on the wrong plate. I shared a few though.