Lunch by the water

Friday April 1 was very windy and cool, but lots of sun.  High was only about 10C (definitely unseasonably cool).  I thought I'd say a word about Sète, as folks might not know where we are at the moment.  Sète is a  beautiful fishing and trade port on the Mediterranean with its own very strong cultural identity, cuisine and dialect.  It is bordered by the Étang de Thau, a saltwater lagoon used primarily for oyster and mussel fields.  Across a narrow isthmus, Sète's Mediterranean coast is lined with sandy beaches.  The town has a network of canals which are links between the Étang de Thau and the Mediterranean Sea.  It has a population of around 44,000.  About one-third of the Sètois originate from Italian immigrants who came to Sète in the 1860s to catch anchovies. Many others came from Spain.

Sète is a three hour train ride from Barcelona to the west and a two hour train ride from Marseille to the south east, where we are headed next.  It is nicknamed the "Venice of the Languedoc".  Montpellier is about 30 km to the northeast of Sète.

The morning view from my cousins- looking at the Mediterranean.  We are on a hill.

Can't get enough of the beautiful irises 

We headed into town for a quick visit to the market.

There are a number of lovely squares in Sète.

Les Halles de Sète is a lovely enclosed market with some of the best fish we have ever seen in our travels.  Some were clearly just freshly caught this morning.  The market has existed since 1890.  The original cast-iron building was replaced in the 1970s.  In 2011, the building was modernised with a more contemporary look.

Olives and anchovies

One stall had a Séte specialty - tielles (small octopus pies).

Tielles (octopus pies in a number of sizes).  

Tielles have been sold here since 1937 

Cheeses

Amazing selection of fish - about 12 vendors

Oysters galore

Karen's favourite fish stall

Escargot

After a few purchases, we went for a coffee at Café Lulu on the main square.

Outside the Café

The roaster inside

The main square had a lovely bandshell.  Karen explained that the Mayor wants to build an underground parking lot under the square.  The bandshell would have to be taken apart and put back together. There is a strong opposition group!  

Main square with bandshell

We then headed for lunch at the nearby village of Bouzigues, which is located on the Étang de Thau, the seawater lagoon.  It has a population of around 1700.  

The oyster beds at Bouzigues

Another view--- Sète is in the background

The village of Bouzigues

Our destination was La Côte Bleue, a hotel restaurant, located just outside the town.  Karen and Daniel had picked this place as it was a larger restaurant and there would be more social distancing between tables.  Masks are now not required in restaurants, though the servers were still wearing theirs.

Outside the restaurant

View from inside--- in warmer weather the patio would be lovely--- Sète across the water.  

We all ordered the prix fix lunch menu, which had a few options.

First course was delicious fresh oysters.

So good.... 

Alain had a wonderful fish soup as his appetizer course

Cod main dish for Alain

I had Lotte fish, scampis and potatoes in a delicious sauce

Alain...

Baba au rum- dessert

Alain had an apple tart with ice cream

We went for a short walk past the restaurant - though it very windy.

The waves were quite choppy

Sète in the background--- we are staying on the other side of the hill, facing the Mediterranean

We drove into the town part of Bouzigues for a short walk.

Very pretty village.

Boats everywhere


Alain (too much sun in this photo)

We headed back to my cousins where Alain had a siesta and I worked on the blog.

Back at the house on the hill facing the Mediterranean (very lovely spot)

Tomorrow, Saturday April 2, we head to Marseille on the 12:36 train, arriving at 2:37 p.m.  The next post will most likely be on Sunday April 3.



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