Despite map and GPS challenges, Les Trois Canadiennes (Didi, Paula and I) just spent three glorious days in northern Brittany. A Breton friend of mine, warned me before we set off: “Where I come from in France, it only rains twice a year…..but in six month increments.” We were prepared for rain and cold, but instead were greeted with endless blue skies, warm weather and lots and lots of butter. When walking through the lovely walled town of St. Malo – there was a familiar enticing smell in the air…yup, even the streets smell of butter.
Kouig amann (Breton for Butter cake) is everywhere. What? You have never heard of these nor know how to pronounce? Order “koo-y-aman” and know that what you are going to get is basically croissant dough, but with sugar in between the layers, nestled in among pounds of fresh butter, and baked until it gets gooey and crispy all at once. The slight caramel-y sweetness only serves to accentuate the incredible butter taste. After a light walk to view the Mont St Michel at a safe distance from tourists, we stopped at a fairly nondescript bakery for breakfast. We were desperate for coffee having overslept and missed our opportunity for a morning meal. This roadside boulangerie was turning out pastries that would be the envy of all of Toronto. Kouig amann, Chausson de Pomme – and Bresille (another sweetened croissant dough – but baked into a handy “baton”). Sandwiched between a questionable looking bar and a gas station, we moved a tiny plastic table into the sunshine in the parking lot – not exactly the Brittany experience you dream of – but the pastries were out of this world. The boulangere stopped to chat with us and told us how twice he nearly emigrated to Canada to open a shop. We begged him to come with us immediately, but alas he went back to his work.
Every restaurant we went to, butter was served with baguette, or rather baguette was served with the butter – and salty butter – seasoned with the local salts of the sea. There are not many regions in France where they will actually serve butter with bread – and often will not give it to you even when asked – but not here in the butter capital – you are never too far away from a good source of the stuff. At Bistro du Viaduct in Dinan – the butter served had a little note attached calling out what farm their butter was specially selected from. We visited a butter shop in St. Malo where once we selected what kind of butter we desired, with what kind of sea salt, they freshly formed our butter selection into a lovely little pat, as we watched. Freshly churned and patted butter – how do you beat that?
Being so near the coast, the seafood in Brittany is magnificent. Driving from Le Mont St Michel to St Malo, we passed tonnes of oyster purveyors – most around the famous bi-valve town of Cancale. Legend has it that Louis XIV had Cancale oysters delivered to him at Versailes. There’s also mussels, langoustines, prawns and of the course the famous Brittany (blue) Lobster. Many restaurants along the coast prepare “fruits de mer platters” –you pick what you’d like on your platter – all served with a garlicky/dijonn-y remoulade sauce (It is NOT a true mayonnaise according to French law if you add mustard!) These gorgeous platters are ready to take home or eat by the side of the sea with an incredible view thrown in for free. After stopping at one of these roadside crustacean meccas, I got all giddy and was prepared to abandon all plans for the weekend in favour of sitting down immediately to a fruits de mer platter and booking a room at the chambre d’hote across the street so we could be as close to the source as possible. Les autres Canadiennes talked me down, and we continued on to St. Malo – where we did feast on fresh seafood of all varieties, washed down with healthy servings of white wine. The langoustines were especially wonderful – they look like a miniature lobster with narrow claws – but taste almost like a combination of lobster and scampi….incroyable!
I wish we had more time to spend in this magical land of butter, sea and salt….but at least I loaded up on lots of local caramels made with fresh Brittany butter and a touch of sea salt to remind me of a wonderful weekend in the sun – I decided against packing any langoustines in my luggage as a souvenir….c’etait vraiment une weekend “ top du top!”
If you find yourself in this neck of the woods – do not miss these 2 wonderful restaurants – and be sure to stop at any one of the roadside stands near Cancale.
L’Atre: http://cuisine-marche-terroir.restaurant-latre.com/
Bistro du Viaduct: http://www.bistrot-du-viaduc.fr/
