Brasserie de l'Hôtel de ville — Restaurant in Avignon

Okay I really bit the big one here. Didn't look at Google reviews till after I sat down. I have eaten Carbonara on every continent (on a ship in Antarctica) on the planet. This establishment wins the award for worst CARBONARA on the planet in my humble opinion. First they bring out the dish and the sauce is like milk, then there's a raw egg in a bowl. I ask what's the egg for? The reply "to pour on your Carbonara!" The pasta is added to the eggs & cheese right out of the water, the hot pasta cooks the eggs. The pasta was not hot enough to add the egg. There were no salt or pepper added to the meal. It appears this was served with fettuccine and it was gummy & chewy. It was very overcooked. The sauce was basically the thickness of milk. I know they did not add egg after cooking the pasta, it was in a bowl on the table. Also there is suppose to be a hard cheese sprinkled over it. There was no cheese in this meal. Usually most add Parmesan. The ham was cooked plain without garlic. The waiter even ask me if I was enjoying the meal I replied "it's the worst carbonara on the planet" his reply really? I stated "Yes the worst on 7 continents" he walked off. A large bottle of water (no gas) €5.50 euro. I'm like really? I highly recommend you look else where for a meal. But definitely do not order...

I think the low ratings for this restaurant are very undeserved. We were staying on the Place de l'Horloge and we liked this brasserie so much, we ate there twice. The staff was friendly, including our "singing waiter" the first night. The greeter by the menu board remembered us when we came back two nights later.

The setting in the middle of the square was great, across from the Hotel de Ville. It was a nice place to relax and sit while having dinner.

Our first night, my wife and I both had the Royal Paella which was fantastic - and reasonably priced! On our second visit, my wife ordered the "large" Orangina soda. Be advised, large - which is labeled on the receipt as "formidable" and clocks in at 12EUR! - is LARGE. I had the escargot which were average - not the best I have had in France, but good - and the tagliatelle bolognaise, which I really enjoyed.

My advice is to ignore the low ratings and give this brasserie a shot if you see something on the...

(Based on take out experience) I think the people giving this place 1 star ate at a different place than I did... We came on a quiet weeknight hoping to get takeout and the attendant was very attentive. We spoke little French and he did his best with English for us, which I greatly appreciate. Got mussels and fries along with a squid ink paella. They let us sit at a table and gave us water while we waited, which is very kind of them. Food was well packaged and they were sure to tell us ketchup and mayo was free 😉 Mind you I come from a seaside city and we have great fresh seafood and mussels there, and the food here was just as good!! Tasty and big portions!! Taste of the sea!! I loved it and we were thrilled with what we got for a good price. The photo doesn't do it justice. I don't know how they got the prawn in the paella so juicy and buttery... Yum!

Please ignore the other reviews and give this place a try. I think you'll be...