Restaurant Les Arpents — Restaurant in Loches

Tonight, we had a delightful dinner at @les_arpents. We've had some stellar meals in France, from rustic local diners to haute cuisine. For me, this one takes the prize.

Warm and friendly service, relaxed atmosphere and one of those menus that is short but hard because everything reads so well... My kir royalle apperitif helped calm my nerves 😉. Let me walk you through my meal:

After a (complimentary) appetiser and amuse bouche (braised red cabbage and gravlax), my entrée of beef tongue (don't be grossed out, is super tasty) and escargot with greens and beef marrow foam got things off to a cracking start.

The plat principal of roast guinea fowl (breast roasted succulently and leg confit), winter veggies and yellow wine chicken sauce is a strong contender for meal of my life. And I've had a few. I genuinely believe it was possibly the best sauce I have ever had, so good that we are going back later in the week so Cathie can order the same. I probably won't return the favour of eating half of hers 😁. It all went sensationally with the 2015 1er Cru Chablis.

A fromage interlude before dessert... Then a delicious lemon tart (Cathie had pear in red wine with yoghurt icecream).

Finished off with an Armagnac digestif!

Very reasonably priced, for the high...

Absolutely delicious food at an elevated level in amboise. Already on the Michelin guide, this is not a dining experience to be missed. They have tasting menus including one that is all the chefs choice but we decided to go a la carte. This is a gastronomique restaurant, so portions are small. They started us with a delicious cold broccoli soup as an amouse-bouche and for entrees we shared a goat cheese and truffles which was creamy and delightful. For mains my parents both got the chicken and I got the veal cheek. Both were scrumptious and perfectly cooked. The veal came with some peaches which paired beautifully and the chicken with a medley of carrots. For dessert I got the house lemon pie , which was a deconstructed version. Omg - calling all lemon lovers, it was so tart and delicious with a lemon sorbet, lemon macaroons, lemon cream, and crumble. My mum got the cafe sampler , which gave a mini version of all the desserts which was lovely. All around great experience in a really beautiful space!

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We went here for lunch with our two teenagers - one a vegetarian, the other a fussy meat eater - and when Jerome told us that it was a tasting menu with no choices I was a little nervous. But I should not have been. We all agreed that it was one of the best meals we have had out as a family. And honestly for the price, it was really great value too.

We all went for the 3 course option. My daughter had the vegetarian menu, which she loved (artichoke and eggplant)! My son the meat (perfectly cooked beef), amazingly he ate every bite of every course, we had the fish (pollack). I went with their wine recommendations, a different glass with everyone course), and we all were very happy with our choices.

Jerome, ably supported by David, provided patient, high quality service, and while there were no tables in the garden, our table was just perfect considering the kids wish to avoid sun.

All in all a gem of a restaurant - I would highly recommend it as a reasonable priced, high end, venue where food surprises are...