Le Moulin à Huile — Restaurant in Carpentras

A relaxed, lengthy luncheon spent at the Moulin à Huile restaurant in Vaison. Quality environment, service and superb meal. Attention spent on every detail. All staff (kitchen and service) rigorously applying masking precautions throughout.

Many years since I last visited; at the time it was a more pretentious 1* Michelin restaurant run by French 'Nordistes'. I by far prefer the current manifestation.

Bear in mind that the price differential between here and the town centre, 300m away, is minimal. But the difference in attitude, care and effort, combined with the beautiful location next to Vaison's Roman bridge, easily makes it worthwhile.

Delicious dishes and entremets. When no one asks me "how would you like your lamb?", I know I'm in the right place. Chef knows best.

Appetiser was followed by a Simmental (cattle breed) beef tartare, with a green tabasco gelee, marinated peppers with cumin. Delicate balance of spices that avoided overwhelming the flavour of the meat. Very tasty. An entremets featuring a melon ‘soup’, complimented with tangy melted goat cheese, to whet the appetite for the mains of lamb shoulder braised with rosemary, as tender and flavoursome as it gets. Two lamb cutlets, perfectly pink. Zucchini gratin (goats cheese).

I had absolutely no intention of taking a dessert as well when I arrived, but as the French say, in the best restaurants “l’appétit vient en mangeant” - the more you eat, the hungrier you get. So a red berry Pavlova with blackcurrant sorbet was my final indulgence of a long luncheon. Packed with fresh fruit, and an excellent meringue.

Highly recommended, not...

It is important to understand this this is primarily a restaurant, that also has 4 (nice) guest rooms!||||There is an expectation that you will have dinner here and if you chose not to, the matron of the house will make it very clear that she is not amused which assuredly will impact the enjoyment of your stay.||||Also, it would be very beneficial if you speak basic French, because no member of the owners family or staff speak much English.||||Having said all this, the location is excellent right outside the walls of the old town and overlooking the river and a mountain. This is a 400 year old building, with the odd shapes and sizes that go with it. The rooms are pretty and well appointed. The family is obviously very artistic and the entire house teems with books, pictures, statute and other knickknacks.||||Without doubt the best breakfasts during our 14 day trip through France - really well done.||||Please note that WI FI is not available in the rooms. You have to god downstairs...

Please note that this is a not your average B&B, it restaurant with 4 available guest rooms all with their own character. The location is perfect for entry and exit into the town. Parking is free and generally available on the road towards the bridge. ||||Check in was a very relaxed affair and we were shown directly to our rooms. We had the balcony room and the view of the river and mountains was delightful. The quirky character of the owners flowed effortlessly throughout the house with art, books and magazines strategically placed on the walls and stairs.||||The service was wonderful and we happily took madam up on her offer to do our laundry free of charge!!! Breakfast was a lavish affair with so much choice :-) ||||We stayed for a Monday night and was treated to probably the largest market that we have even seen the next morning. It covers the whole town and just about every product that you could ever need. ||||Simply put, we will definitely...