Well, I can’t say that I did! Mange tout, I mean!
I most certainly did not!
We ended up taking our own sandwiches to Bristol Airport….and a good thing too!
Although an impressive revamp of the shopping area, I was less excited about the food area which was all upstairs (the lift wasn’t working and one of our party was unable to take the stairs – so not much use really!).
Whilst there is a tempting-looking champagne bar which has been there for a couple of years now, the rest is the usual sort of fayre. Granted, it’s much fresher than the offerings of previous years but it still doesn’t tantalise the tastebuds crying out for a little international cuisine. There are some lovely salads, baquettes and sandwiches though but I wanted something altogether more exciting.
Where ARE the freshly-made right in front of you chilli prawn or calamari tapas or the perfectly seasoned and freshly made big thick spanish omelette (tortilla to you and me!) or (can’t believe I am saying this but) the Jamie Oliver tapas-style mini scotch eggs?
If I didn’t “mange tout” in Bristol, I would have suffered from starvation in La Rochelle airport. However, yes, you guessed it…… the local boulangerie in the middle of La Rochelle saved the day with their freshly-made on the premises goat’s cheese, ham and salad baguette.
Whilst there is a friendly little cafe-bar at La Rochelle airport, the offering is limited. The problem here is that the airport is TINY! For the size of the city and the quantity of tourists travelling in and out every day, it’s actually quite astoundingly small and undeveloped. Some of you may think Guernsey Airport is small. Think again!
Maybe this is a good thing. There’s not far to walk.
There’s not much to do either though and certainly, no trace of international cuisine.
So, all in all, I don’t have any photos to show you. Well, not within the airports anyway.
However, whilst in La Rochelle, we did attend a jazz evening at a wonderful restaurant which is a short taxi ride out of the town and has stunning views over the bridge linking La Rochelle to Ile de Re.
Our hosts delighted us with a selection of amuse-bouches, both savoury and sweet, which would excite the most discerning of international cuisine buffs.
Our hosts – the Chef and his Wife
Both plates were attractively presented and featured a varied range of flavours which will remain in my taste memory for some time.
The savoury dish was a Spanish, French and Mexican fusion and included gazpacho, a French-style guacamole, smoke salmon quesadillas, pate de foie gras, and jambon.
a savoury selection of international cuisine
Wouldn’t something like this be great served in an airport?
The “sweetie plate” (phrase coined by the Chef’s glorious wife), consisted of an “ile flottant”, a fabulously gooey chocolate fondant cake, mango sorbet, a kind of battenburg cake made with strawberry and mango, freshly-made white and milk chocolate and a slab of nougat cake.
Truly scrumptious international cuisine on a plate!
the dessert platter
Please feel free to comment below with your thoughts, experiences and anything else “on topic” that you care to mention!
