The Aix Restaurant Post
by Céleste
I’m just starting to realize how much Asian food we eat. It is a lot more than I would have guessed. Not only do we go to a lot of Asian restaurants here in France, but when we go grocery shopping for meals, many of our meals are Asian as well. In fact, we’re having pork dumplings for dinner tonight.
This is a big post which we have been updating, so I will put in a little table of contents (for my own reference as well as for readers).
1. Breakfast
2. French Food
3. European Food
4. Fast Casual
5. Asian Food
6. Indian and Pakistani Food
7. Bars
8. Dessert and Coffee
Breakfast
Both Vincent and I have been craving a big ol’ American greasy-spoon breakfast, like at Mickey’s, Al’s, or Ike’s. Well, too damn bad, you Americans, because it’s not here. So we just had some crêpes and tartines instead. What I was really missing though was the morning protein, like bacon or sausage. My blood sugar gets really low if I don’t get some protein in the morning, and I’m not really finding it available much. Maybe I just need to keep looking? Or try other sources of protein, like nuts or yogurt. Though I’m also lactose-intolerant, which has not been great in France. I’ve been eating a lot of cheese and ice cream here, oops. It’s hard to avoid, and also I don’t want to avoid it and I have no willpower.
Bar Le Festival
We got up semi-early (for us) one day and decided we needed crêpes for breakfast. I was looking for something bacon-y but the place we wanted to go to was taking it’s time to open up for the morning (20 minutes later than what the sign said…) So we walked over to the Festival and had crêpes and coffee. Standard fare, nothing special. I had a nutella crêpe, Vincent had a chocolate one. They only have crêpes sucrées (sweet ones). The best part was just being in the center of town, people watching, and sitting near the fountain. We sat out in the heated terrace because it was little chilly, and the staff then proceeded to pull the terrace down, so we were fully outside. Also, lots of smokers were eating there at the same time, so not ideal.
La Patacrêpe
We went to this chain-restaurant crêpe place later that week with our cousin. My crêpe had egg and cheese, so I was happy. The combo that Vincent and I got came with a crêpe sucrée and a crêpes salée (sweet and savory, respectively).
It was also Candlemas that day, and wikipedia says:
In France and Belgium, Candlemas (French: La Chandeleur) is celebrated with crêpes.
Parfait! We didn’t even plan it.
French Food
I promise, we’ll try to eat more straight-up French food, from now on.
This place is just up the street from us, and we walk by it almost every day. It always smells so good and has signs up for dishes with duck, goose, rabbit, and other meats. So when Émilie arrived in Aix at 10pm on a Saturday night, we knew where to take her.
Vincent had whiskey and my cousin and I stuck with water. Both Émilie and Vincent ordered duck with an orange sauce, while I went rogue and ordered goose with a garlic sauce. I loved my meal, though the others felt their sauce was too sweet. They were pretty jealous of me. The dishes were served with a potato side, mashed carrots, beans of some kind, and some other side-dishes. It was like an American Thanksgiving. I really liked it!
The staff was also very kind and attentive, which I think was because they wanted to practice English with us. See, my cousin and I both have loud voices, and we tend to be even louder when together. This is true of most people in my family (I’m looking at you, mom). I think every waiter checked in with us at least once, saying, “How is it?” with very French inflections. It was charming.
One waiter, who may have been under the influence of some kind of substance, kept coming to talk to us in English and French, and was very confused as to why I spoke English. He even asked me, “So why do you speak French?” It was very Mean Girls.
He then said the “f word” about 20+ times, all while explaining that he isn’t allowed to say the “f word” in the restaurant. We had a good laugh about it though, and didn’t leave the restaurant until well after midnight. I will definitely want to return.
La Luge
This one is also right near us. Our French friends brought us here for dinner after a rugby game. Vincent and I had fondue which was super good while our friends had a couple raclettes which is a cheese and meat assortment. The cool thing was they had a half cheese wheel and a big melter that they could scrape off at regular intervals to get melted cheese.
For us it was just a big pot on a burner.
Everything was delicious and made for a great dinner. Our friends wanted to go get drinks afterward but Vincent and I are old now and we retired to bed instead since we were so full.
La Calèche
We took Vincent’s grandma and her friend to this restaurant, which has fish, pasta, and salads. It was not memorable. I had a salad. I don’t even want to write about it, it was so average. Pass.
Le Contrepoint
We went to this restaurant as a final “date” together before leaving Aix for good (6/4/2015). We wanted to eat at a fairly nice, French restaurant before my family got here. We really enjoyed the food, the restaurant was quiet with a nice atmosphere, and the waiters were really nice! When they found out we spoke English, they immediately switched to English and gave us an English menu. I had a duck dish with brioche in it, which was sweet, with a strange texture, but good. Vincent had a sirloin steak with a black pepper and mustard sauce. It was a bit chewy, but the sauce was brilliant. For dessert, we even had tiramisu à speculoos, which is one of our favorites!
European Food
Spanish, Italian, etc.
Tapas Cafe
Tapas Cafe is a Spanish restaurant and it was excellent. We ordered several different tapas including potatoes with a spiced mayo (super good), eggplant, guacamole, chicken wings, and bruschetta. Would definitely go here again! We stayed there well after midnight but that was due to good company.
Dal Gladiotore
Arrivederci France, and hello Italy! We’ve now eaten at Dal Gladiotore twice and it was fantastic both times! We had heard from a French friend that it was delicious and fresh Italian food, so we headed over with our American friends, and then with Vincent’s grandma and her friend. It was amazing! The decor was interesting.
Yes, that is Russell Crowe. We were surprised when we first went into the restaurant, as there are only three tables in the first room. However, we were taken downstairs into what must have previously been a wine cellar, where there were plenty more places to sit. The waiter asked us both times whether we had a reservation; we didn’t, and we got in within ten minutes, but a reservation might be a good idea. If you have claustrophobia, you may not enjoy the basement seating. I even got a little panicked about it; I think it’s the fact that the walls are vaulted and made of stone. It was a bit cramped.
Vincent and his friends ordered lasagna, and I ordered gnocchi. They all raved about their food and wine, and ate every morsel. My gnocchi was delicious and so fresh-tasting. I loved it. The second time we went, I had a salad with corn, cheese, and tuna, while Vincent had a tagliatelle à la bolognaise. We shared both. It was a perfect amount, though not as tasty as the lasagna or gnocchi. The pasta dishes are huge, so I would recommend sharing, maybe with a side-salad for each person as well. Of course I did the American tourist thing and took a picture; the waiter seemed confused.
Fast Casual
A little better than fast food, but not quite a sit-down restaurant.
Aux Petits Oignons
This has quickly become one of our favorite places in Aix. It’s a tiny little burger place near the Place des Precheurs, which serves, dare I say it?, the best burgers in Aix. It’s small, like Al’s Diner in Minneapolis, and it’s staffed by just one guy, Phil, who is a delight to talk to in French and English.
I have now tasted the veggie burger and the original. Both are amazing. He uses fresh ingredients from the market at the Place des Precheurs, and he makes his own buns and the cookies (which are fabulous). The fries are spiced (we think) with herbes de Provence, and the veggie burger has carrot, toasted cheese, mint, and avocado. So good! And for a pretty good price, at around 10 euros.
The real kicker on the burgers is the petits oignons (little onions) themselves, which are carmelized to perfection. The first time we ate here, Vincent asked for no onions, because he’s just not an onion guy. Phil warned him to get the onions, but he wouldn’t listen. Well, Vincent tried my burger and he’s a believer now. I’m sure we’ll return when Vincent’s dude friends are in town, and when my family gets here.
Le Pacha
Le Pacha is right by us and serves the customary kebobs — baguettes with shwarma and fries. You can also have it with a tortilla-like bread. Both result in good food entering your mouth. We typically go here when we want something cheap and tasty.
Snack Samos
Another kebob place near us — we couldn’t decide if it was as good or better than Le Pacha so we decided on the same. You can’t go wrong with either place!
L’Eclipse Snack
YAKP (Yet Another Kebab Place) — this one is right next to Le Pacha. This place was also tasty. So basically, we’ve learned no matter what kebab place you go to in Marseille/Aix, it’s all good.
Asian
Hey, at least they’re all different types of Asian food (Japanese, Vietnamese, and Thai).
Ô Zen
It’s a buffet, it has sushi and a grill, pho, and very kind waitstaff. Plus I had frog legs for the first time. Normally I would say buffet + frog legs = food-borne illness, but it seemed clean and no one got sick. I had plenty of sushi, a bowl of pho that the waitress offered us when she saw us eying the pho cauldron, tons of nems (spring rolls), and a nice chocolate mousse dessert. Oh, and I ate the body off of a deep-fried minnow. So that was weird. I regret every moment of that choice. Otherwise, good food, good time!
Restaurant Chinatown
Contrary to popular logic, this is both a Vietnamese and Chinese restaurant. We went here yesterday, as we wandered about looking for a notary public (I will save that particular hell for another post). The menu had shark, and I briefly considered it. I’ve been trying to be more adventurous, specifically with meats (see above at Ô Zen), but I couldn’t bring myself to eat shark. I pictured a full, live shark on my plate, looking at me with its beady little eyes, maybe softly opening and closing its mouth. I know that’s not how it’s served, but it’s all I could think about. So I had chicken with a spicy sauce instead (what, I’m not a vegetarian!) It was good, and service was great — the waitstaff was attentive and patient with my French skills.
Délice Thaï
Another Asian restaurant we experienced with Émilie. The waiter was sort of grumpy, but still patient with my slow French. I usually find that others whose first language isn’t French tend to be more patient and kind about my mistakes, though most native French speakers are as well. Émilie had pho here (we love it!), while Vincent and I had curry, beef and chicken respectively.
For dessert, Vincent and Émilie had ice cream, with exotic flavors like chocolate, coffee, and…vanilla?! Crazy kids. I cursed my lactose-intolerant ways and got a banana beignet. Or I thought it was one at least. When the waiter brought it out, it was three gigantic logs of beignet, hot and crispy and filled to the brim with banana. I almost cried. I was already so full. But I had to eat it, for the glory of America.
Cay Tam
Cay Tam is another Asian restaurant, this time Vietnamese and Chinese, located on the Rue de la Verrerie. We went there for a date night, just the two of us. This restaurant looks a bit fancier, and had a very professional waitstaff. The hostess was sweet, and brought Vincent an English menu. Our waiter was inscrutable, though kind once we smiled and said “merci.”
The food was good. I had pho, as usual, and Vincent had a spicy beef dish. French people don’t like spicy food, so we usually can’t find it, even at Asian and Indian restaurants. I suppose they usually cater to their audiences. We always ask for extra spicy food though. Cay Tam also has the possibility of Asian fondue/Korean barbecue. We might go back and try that next time.
Nirvana
The owner of Nirvana is half-Vietnamese and half-Indian, so you’ll find the Indian review below. When we went the first time we did half Vietnamese and half Indian dishes. For Vietnamese food, we tried egg rolls and Pho, which were both excellent.
The owner is super nice and spoke English to us and made conversation before our food came. Definitely going again and you can take-out until 8pm.
Indian and Pakistani Food
Delhi Délice
We went here with two of our French friends, because we had heard it was good from yet another friend here in Aix. There are 5 years worth of Trip Advisor recommendations outside the door, so we figured it must be good. The decor is a fusion of French and Indian, with lots of bright reds. It was a quiet restaurant, even though there was Indian music playing, and there were times when the silence could be a bit awkward.
But the food was good. I had a chicken curry dish with a tomato base (the names were different from what I was used to). Vincent had something similar but with two “peppers” on the spice scale. The food was good, though rice was separate; I don’t know why they do that in France so much, of course I want rice, why would I eat curry without a base of rice or naan or roti? But the food (served in IKEA dishes) was good, and the pakoras Vincent ordered for a starter were surprisingly crisp and yummy. We had a good time overall, and I would definitely return here with a lively group, to give the place a little more noise!
Nirvana
You can find the Vietnamese review of Nirvana above in the Asian section. Know this: Nirvana is where you can find real spicy food in Aix (at least, as a tourist — I’m sure the local Indian/Pakistani owners make their own dishes spicy). Celeste had tandoori chicken which she loved. Vincent got the chicken vindaloo, a personal favorite, and he was sweating — the owner even brought him a chili sauce. It was super tasty and super spicy, so he was in heaven.
The owner is super nice and spoke English to us and made conversation before our food came. Definitely going again and you can take-out until 8pm.
Bars
Le Wohoo
Vincent will write a longer post about this, but we watched the Super Bowl at this bar, which caters to Americans, as it’s right near the American Institute in Aix. We sure met a lot of obnoxious Americans here. The staff was friendly, though they didn’t know as much about the countries of the world as me. They have flags from different countries hanging on the ceiling. They didn’t even know the Kazakhstani flag! For shame.
O’Sullivans
We went to this Irish pub with our French friends and drank Guinness and talked. It was fun! Good place to go to spend time talking with people you like.
Cave à Tonneau
Our French friends invited us here for a wine-tasting. We said yes, and I’m really glad we did! They picked out the wine for us, because Vincent and I basically just know that there are different colors and it gets you drunk. We had a little red, a little white, and some trays of meat, cheese, and bread, as we hadn’t had dinner yet (we had Pizza Capri afterward).
The place is small, and each table is actually a large barrel (tonneau means barrel). It was dark, and at times the music was too loud, but overall I enjoyed the atmosphere. I think it’s a place I would go again, either with our French friends or with any friends that visit us in Aix.
Also, they had candles where they just let the wax melt, forming strange and interesting patterns in the wax. It added to the decor, it looked like the Phantom of the Opera’s kitchen or something.
Dessert and coffee
This section is to review places we specifically ate dessert at, and mostly places that specialize in dessert items (ice cream/gelato shops, patisseries, etc.), as well as coffee places.
Amorino
After our meetup group one Saturday, we saw that it was really nice outside, and we decided to go for a walk. Of course, “nice” to Minnesotans is equal to “freezing Arctic circle” to Aixois, so everyone else was bundled up and gave us funny looks as we walked around with open sweatshirts on. We passed a gelato shop, Amorino, which until that weekend, had been closed for the winter months. We decided to take advantage of the shop being open, and got some gelato.
It was amazing. Vincent especially loved his, classic chocolate and vanilla combo, while I savoured my hazelnut/strawberry combo. We walked through the sunny and relatively warm streets of Aix, eating our ice cream and enjoying a beautiful day. What a fabulous time to be expatriots in Southern France.
Maison Weibel
I only went here briefly for some coffee, but this place has some wonderful-looking pastries, great service, and a nice place to sit for coffee in the Place Richelme. I’d like to return for some éclairs.
Café Covim
This place is a little strange, because the sign is almost unreadable to me. Is Covim? Covin? Cuvun? I looked it up, and it’s Covim. But every time I suggested it to Vincent, I called it something different. We went there for an afternoon, because Vincent wanted to try to work out of a cafe. Since Book in Bar doesn’t have wifi, and Columbus Cafe is always so busy, we thought we would try this place, which also has take-away coffee. The place itself looks like it’s trying to be chic and trendy, but it was just empty when we got there. The wifi signal was strong and it was quiet, which was perfect for me to read the second Game of Thrones book. Vincent and I split a pretty good cookie (well, good for the French anyway — it’s not the same as home).
Wow, we eat out a lot!
Not really, I’ve been compiling this list for awhile, and thought I should finally write it all up. I think we’ll just update this with any new restaurants we try out.
Fan Question
Finally, one of our warm and wonderful readers has a question!
“I would like to hear more about how the popular food and restaurant costs/tastes/textures/nutrition differ from American food!! and if you feel like its easier to eat healthy there or the opposite or if they have more natural farm foods or more shipped in foods…stuff like that!!”
Great question! One thing we’ve really noticed is the lack of truly spicy foods. The French don’t seem to like “spicy.” Even at the Indian, East Asian, and North African restaurants we’ve been to, it isn’t spicy like in the US. I suppose they cater to their clientele. That’s not to say it isn’t flavorful or delicious; it’s just not that “hot” flavor we love in the States. I think some of the love of spicy food comes from the Southern traditions in the US, and the Latino influence we have, that the French don’t have. Actually, besides a greasy breakfast, the other thing I miss the most is Mexican/Latino food.
As for cost, I think lunch and dinner seem more expensive to me, though I have to admit that Vincent and I don’t eat out much. However, they also have dinners that tend to be more than one course, or include dessert, for example. We see a lot of places that advertise a 14–16 euro lunch, which seems pretty high. If you want something cheaper, it’s going to be more like fast food or a snack (fast casual), like kébabs or crêpes, or something fried. Dinner tends to just be more expensive all-around, so we eat dinner at home most of the time. It’s great that both Vincent and I enjoy cooking.
As for nutrition, to be honest I haven’t been paying much attention. We walk a lot. We don’t have a car, and everything is mostly within walking distance anyway. I think Europeans in general walk a lot, which is so different from the American lifestyle. I think that’s why we haven’t paid much attention to calories or fat or sugar content. We also hike a lot here. Our average steps per day, according to our FitBit (thanks, Gaston’s mom!) is like 12,000 steps, and over 20,000 when we go hiking. So we’re doing well. I do notice that the portions are typically smaller, and they use a lot of vegetables, which is nice. I also haven’t had a hamburger since I’ve been here, though pizza has been a favorite.
I think in Aix, I’ve noticed a lot of local or farmer’s market food. There is a farmer’s market here daily, so it’s easy for us as consumers to go pick up vegetables and fruits (so many clementines!). It’s cheap and delicious and local. I’ve also seen restaurant employees carting back food from the market as well, which I think is fantastic, and not as common in the US. At many restaurants we’ve been to, I’ve seen signs on the wall saying, “This beef came from (some French city),” or “This vegetable is from (region in France).” So from my limited experience, it seems easier to eat local. For foods, I see a lot of beef, duck, eggplant, zucchini, spinach, goat cheese, any kind of cheese for that matter, honey, and of course bread. I genuinely like the food here, even when it’s just fast casual or nontraditional. In the States, Vincent and I try to avoid chains, but here, we don’t know what is a chain and what isn’t, so I guess ignorance has been helpful for us to just get out there and try different places.
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