Liao — Restaurant in Bayeux

It was like eating clouds, the Mochi de Maison is a dessert worthy of Michelin starred restaurant- cherry blossom mochi, filled with ‘cloud’ and a surprise centre of tangy raspberry couli. They were so good we gasped and ordered a second round in another flavour, then another, then another, four desserts in all and that was after two courses. This restaurant has a rare chef, a woman who has a golden touch with everything she cooks but let’s start at the beginning. We were looking for lunch and dropped by on a whim. We began with crispy spring rolls in a crunch crust and dumplings that been both cooked in broth and pan fried to create the perfect crisp and slightly sticky base that raises these little Unami packets of joy to star status. This was followed by beef pho, a South Asian noodle soup broth of noodles,meat and herbs. The bone broth is everything in this dish and should be cooked for hours or even days, subtly spiced with star anise and cinnamon amongst other things. Usually, in Europe, it is either too sweet, or heavy or greasy. I’ve written a book on Lao cuisine so I know what it should be, and this is it, the broth was light and perfumed as if made in Vietnam and the tender shreds of beef were still pink in the fragrant liquid. Superb. Then it was time for dessert. Oh my God, those mochi deserve their own shop, there would be queue around the block, we reordered them three more times! We tried cherry blossom , blueberry, vanilla and then chocolate. They change the flavours according to season, we dream of going back for more. This place is a gem, the couple who own it was wonderfully friendly, and so enthusiastic about the food, pleasing their guests and guiding you to interesting things in the area. If you have seen the recent Juliette Binoche film The Taste of Things. (La passion de Dodin Bouffant) this is the quality of cook, a ‘super cook’ hidden away at this restaurant. Eat here you won’t be disappointed, have...

The 5 stars are real. We went for an awesome dinner at Liao. Ran by a beautiful family whose passion for service, quality, and authenticity is front and center with every plate.

Seriously, start to finish, an A+ experience for some awesome cuisine.

We haven’t stopped talking about it going on 24 hours now.

Small place, get your reservation in early and support this awesome family.

Added bonus: Christophe (husband of the amazing duo) is an accomplished and recognized historian who runs a tour company: Normandy-Heritage Tours. He is a great host and quite entertaining. My biggest regret now is not using Christophe for some of our excursions while in Bayuex. If you read this far, I would book with them too!

Rock on, Liao! We need...

We came here on a whim looking for a bite on a Monday evening when many restaurants are closed, and we were so glad we did! Everything, from the dishes, to the silverware, to the chopsticks, is chosen with care and style. The menu is kept limited but everything is made fresh from scratch. We had the fried dumplings, bimbimbap, and the rice noodles and everything was tasty with the right amount of salt and oil. The owners are friendly and greet everyone warmly. We really enjoyed our meal--just like what we cook for ourselves at home (we are very picky Asian gourmands). It's the perfect spot for a delicious and homey meal. And it cost way less than what we usually would have paid for a meal in town on a per...