Postcard from Montpellier, France: Fishing for where to eat

A postage stamp featuring a detailed illustration of a pike fish, labeled 'Esoc lucius' and 'Brochet', with a green background showcasing aquatic vegetation, and marked with a value of '5,00'.

Above: Red mullet stuffed with diced celery root atop zuccchini puree at IKAL.

The first stop of our spring trip was Montpellier in the southwest of France, and we had no trouble scoring the seafood we craved. Here’s an alphabetical list of spots we sampled for you.

Spaces under the arcades of the 18th-century Saint-Clement aqueduct are known for their vibrant food market, but we were not wandering around picturesque streets in search of produce to cook. The neighborhood’s Bistrot des Arceaux welcomed us with dishes prepared in what the owners refer to as “a modern home kitchen.” Artistic plating is not the kitchen’s specialty, but it knows how to turn out a plateful of flavor.

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Postcard from Montpellier, France: ‘Objectotherapy’ in Sete

A vintage French postage stamp featuring a graphic depiction of a waterfront building in Sete, with a boat in the foreground and hills in the background, labeled "REPUBLICQUE FRANÇAISE" and marked with a value of "25F".

Above: Detail of one assemblage found in glass display cases of “Les Vitrines de Bernard Belluc” at MIAM – Museum of Modest Arts in Sete.

Maybe you first need to cue up a little Felliniesque background music for this post. MIAM – Musee International des Arts Modestes has its own hymn or anthem, composed and performed by Pascal Comelade (1955-) and General Alcozar, to celebrate the opening of the museum in 2000.

MIAM in Sete

“At the turn of the 1980s, the notion of Modest Arts was coined by Herve Di Rosa to designate a set of objects that elude all classifications and do not belong to Great Art. Popular figures, Action Figures, amateur paintings, devotional objects, tourist objects, advertising signs, body arts, video game imagery, from here or elsewhere, these abandoned or downgraded productions challenge us and form the labile territory of the Modest Arts, a dynamic space with shifting borders, capable of constantly renewing itself.” The Modest Arts, MIAM website

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