Mill Landonvillers — Hotel in Metz

We returned Moulin de Landonvillers||||What can I say about Moulin de Landonvillers? ||We love it so much that we have been back again stopping over on our way to Bavaria this year. ||||The welcome we receive from Joel and Lysiane was again so warm, friendly and welcoming – it was more like coming home or visiting really good friends. ||||We had just come from La Grange de Conde a Michelin Hotel & Restaurant. Joel and Lysiane’s Bed & Breakfast is very different to this but in such a great, peaceful setting. We arrived and were immediately asked if we would like to sit in the garden, which we did. Soon coffee and homemade cakes appeared. ||||Moulin de Landonvillers is a Bed and Breakfast but with a difference, Joel will cook dinner if you would like him to. There is no menu, he will create and cook you whatever he decides that day using as much from their own garden and vegetables that he can. They also keep chickens, so eggs are really superbly fresh. ||||We also opt to eat Joel’s dinners as they are a work of art and this year was no exception. As mentioned, the previous evening we had dined at La Grange de Conde a Michelin listed Hotel & Restaurant, but Joel’s dinner was far superior to the dinner that we ate at La Grange de Conde. We have begged Joel to come to England, Somerset in particular, and open a restaurant, but he loves their place too much. ||||As I have mentioned previously, the rooms are a little quirky and full of character and nothing like you would find elsewhere. Everything is immaculately clean and comfortable and we were provided complimentary water as well in our room. ||||To get to the rooms, there is a fantastic circular staircase which I can just about manage as I have MS, but this is sadly not a place for someone in a wheelchair. ||||Leaving Moulin de Landonvillers and Joel and Lysiane was difficult, they really are wonderful hosts and the food is simply exquisite. The price is 32 Euros per head, but this includes an Aperitif, then four courses, cheese, wine with your meal and a liquor afterwards. The previous evening we had been charged a similar amount just for a bottle of wine!||||Will we go back – undoubtedly YES and will as long as I can drive and climb that spiral staircase. ||||If you are around Metz and looking for an unforgettable experience, then I suggest you try Moulin de Landonvillers and say Hi to Joel and Lysiane for us. ||||Joel et Lysiane merci beaucoup vous ette merveilleux||||David...

What can we say? ||||This was our third visit here & still can't believe Joel's talent in the kitchen. Having eaten at many, many good restaurants & hotels, Joel's food is amongst the very best.||||This is a B&B in a converted water mill, slightly quirky and original in its design, but very comfortable with views over the mill stream and fields.||||They grow all their vegetables, have their own hens and the magic that Joel casts in his kitchen with the ingredients is incredible. ||||Again we were en route to Germany (Bavaria) so stopped over to break the journey. ||||I really can't recommend this highly enough if you really appreciate fine dining. Joel was a chef at a top restaurant in the South of France for 20 years but now runs this delightful B&B with his wife Lysiane. ||||Dinner is only available if you book beforehand and will be based on fresh ingredients available from their vegetable garden with local meat or fish. There is no menu, Joel simply prepares dinner from seasonally available vegetables and fruits. There is a pre-dinner aperitif, normally four courses, including an Amuse Bouche with complimentary wine and cheese. ||||Despite trying to persuade Joel to come to England to open a restaurant, we have failed, so it looks as if we will have to keep going there. Fortunately we also booked in on our return from Germany so we were able to experience two of Joel's superb creations and enjoy the warmth of their welcome and the sounds of the mill river as it passes our bedroom window.||||Breakfasts are typically French & German but Joel always has some of his home made Yogurts featuring local, fresh fruit, various jams and preserves all home made as well as the normal faire. Ham and Cheese along with cake is available too.||||If you enjoy fine dining, then DON'T pass this B&B by, book in and make sure you book dinner. ||||Accessibility.||Access to the rooms is via an incredible spiral staircase so this is not an accessible hotel and certainly not for wheelchair users. I use two sticks so manage the stairs. ||||Grounds.||Very pleasant grounds with no other houses or buildings close by with tables and chairs for you to use. If fine, you are invited to eat outside - which we did. ||||There is a main road across the fields, but the wonderful sound of the water is the...

Quick summary: a nice spot that is something different for an overnight stay. The long version: We stayed here for one night while driving through the area while on holidays from Australia. I quite like the bed and breakfast style accommodation and this one looked interesting. We booked in for the dinner, bed and breakfast which turned out to be a good idea as there did not seem to be any restaurants in the area. The house is on the edge of a very small village. We had a room at the top of a spiral staircase so we didn’t take all of our bags upstairs – just what we needed for the night. The host met us and welcomed us but then got his wife to explain things as he did not speak much English and we can only speak English. ||The room was light, clean and airy with a view over the river/stream and across paddocks. I thought that it was a pleasant outlook. The style of the room was a bit quirky and the bathroom was effectively in the room but with a small screen that could be opened out. The toilet had a door so it was private. There was an upstairs bit with 2 beds but we did not need to use it. It was accessed by something closer to a ladder than stairs. ||The dinner was very enjoyable. We ate with another couple who were staying there. They were Swiss and could speak French and English (in addition to their usual language of Swiss German). There was about 4 courses to the dinner each of which was very nice. Most of the dishes included ingredients from the garden of the house. The host would explain each dish and the wife in the Swiss couple would then give us a quick translation. Overall, the meal was of the quality that we would expect from a nice local restaurant.||Breakfast was at a communal table with the other 4 couples who were staying that night. It was a continental breakfast with bread, meat and cheese, yoghurt, jams etc. Many of the items were made by the host or his wife.||This was a nice place to stay and one that we will remember. A bit quirky but comfortable and with friendly staff and company. With dinner and breakfast included, it was also very good value. (For those with special cars, it is also quite secure which is why the Swiss...