Le Lion D 'Or — Restaurant in Blois

Cande is a small village about 5 miles outside Blois. For us it was a mid way stop on the way back from the Dordogne. Its a pleasant spot by a river with an old stone bridge.||||The Lion d'Or is a small old coaching inn with a more moden annex behind. We were delayed & arrived late (8pm) but received a friendly welcome without fuss, although sadly missing a table on the terrace for dinner. Our rooms were in the annex & were simple & comfortable. Ideal for an overnight stop. Unfortunately we were right above the bins which in August were pretty ripe! Strange really as there was plenty of room to put them elsewhere.||||The restaurant though was something extraordinary. The food is quite superb - probably the best we've ever experienced. The dishes they offer are slightly complicated with mutiple sauces but were perfectly judged. The quality, flavour & presentation were faultless. We normally eat pretty well in France but this was way beyond anything we've had elsewhere. I'm glad it was our last night so we could finish on a high. Quite expensive but you really do get what you pay for.||||I haven't given it 5 because breakfast was poor. Hard rolls from the night before, packaged butter & jams. I really wish the owner could have put a little of the effort from dinner into breakfast. On the way out of town though we found a superb Patisserie just on the outskirts heading towards Blois. We'll go there next time instead.||||Would we go back to the Lion d'Or? Like a shot & intend...

We stayed a night at Le Lion D'or two years ago (before Tripadvisor listed it) and stayed again this August. The welcome here is warm and friendly and the dining room is charming but it is the expertise of the chef that makes the experience. All I can say is that the food here is SUPERB, better than anything we have eaten elsewhere in the Loire (though we have eaten very well at many hotels and restaurants there) and better than all but one of our favourites in the UK. Such skill in cooking is worth a long journey and if you are in the Cande area you really should seek this place out. On our recent stay (August 2012) we were treated to brilliant fish and meat dishes (hake and veal especially excellent with glorious, flavourful but not heavy sauces) and the starters and desserts also sparkled. The various 'menu' options ran from around 20 euros (we paid 32 per person) to around 50 and there is also an extensive 'carte', wines are well chosen and prices are reasonable too. Cande sur Beuvron is a very small village but seems quite easily accessible by road from many parts of the Loire (it is not far from Amboise). Le Lion D'or has bedrooms too which, though more than a little spartan in their furnishings are pleasantly light and airy - but it is the food that you...

We stayed a night at Le Lion D'or two years ago (before Tripadvisor listed it) and stayed again this August. The welcome here is warm and friendly and the dining room is charming but it is the expertise of the chef that makes the experience. All I can say is that the food here is SUPERB, better than anything we have eaten elsewhere in the Loire (though we have eaten very well at many hotels and restaurants there) and better than all but one of our favourites in the UK. Such skill in cooking is worth a long journey and if you are in the Cande area you really should seek this place out. On our recent stay (August 2012) we were treated to brilliant fish and meat dishes (hake and veal especially excellent with glorious, flavourful but not heavy sauces) and the starters and desserts also sparkled. The various 'menu' options ran from around 20 euros (we paid 32 per person) to around 50 and there is also an extensive 'carte', wines are well chosen and prices are reasonable too. Cande sur Beuvron is a very small village but seems quite easily accessible by road from many parts of the Loire (it is not far from Amboise). Le Lion D'or has bedrooms too which, though more than a little spartan in their furnishings are pleasantly light and airy - but it is the food that you...