Carnac Restaurants

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The Restaurant La Côte in Carnac is celebrating 17 years of passion for good food in 2011 so I thought I'd update my tip. I haven't been back to Brittany since 1999 but when I do return to this favourite place of mine, I will go back to Carnac and to Pierre Michaud's excellent restaurant.

Pierre Michaud is the chef at La Côte. He's from Auray, a nice town nearby but he considers himself a true man from Carnac, where his grandfather had an old farm-house. Pierre Michaud took over the old house to save the walls from crumbling down and the Restaurant La Côte was a labour of love. The place is beautiful inside and out, they have zen-like gardens, inviting dining rooms, etc.

Everything came together at La Cote and made my time there pleasant in every way. There were various menus at different prices, I chose the menu plaisir (Fun Menu) and loved it. 35 Euros I think, or close.

1999 is the year I joined VT (under another name.) I wasn't taking pics of food in restaurants then. So here are a few photos of the area where the Restaurant La Côte is located.

If you check out the restaurant's website, it first opens on an Intro... give it time to load, you'll hear Celtic music and song and you'll see some good photos of the place.

Favorite Dish: Pierre Michaud works magic with all types of products, fish of course but also excellent meat. Accompaniments of vegetables are done with inventiveness, sometimes associations are surprising -- this makes the meal very interesting and fun, not just delicious :)

I had a pavé de colin in a crust of... herbs or spices, I forget. I like the way the fish is presented on its own, besides the vegetable dish. A pleasure for the eyes which really wet my appetite! Colin is lean and must be cooked carefully so as not to be dry. Michaud knows how to do it.

In English, colin would probably be whiting, hake. It's delicate in flavour and has lean, soft flesh. I don't often go for fish but when I see the word pavé, it means the piece won't have bones so I get a little daring. And to be frank, I think we should honour Pachamama at every occasion, by tasting a bit of all she offers us. I prefer discovering over going for old favourites.

Apparently in the UK, they've renamed the fish called pollack with the new name COLIN since it wasn't selling very well under its British identity... the wonders of marketing. :)

In French, colin is also called merlu I think... all these names are confusing! Le merlu me donne la berlue!