La Madeleine - Verneuil-Sur-Avre

On the way back from Normandy, we found a small picturesque village called Verneuil sur Avre which had an outdoor market and a very nice little restaurant called La Madeleine. It was a typically quaint French village, although the restaurant owner insisted it should be called a town, not a village. Here we were pleasantly surprised to find a fantastic restaurant in a quiet little place. It was decorated in a rustic style and the family of four ran the place - mum taking orders, father cooking and the son helping out in the kitchen.

For the amuse bouche we were offered a slice of smoked duck on a bed of shredded apples. Tender, succulent meat, apples from the local region, and a home made dressing: peach vinagrette, oil, and creme de cerise, topped with a scattering of chives. Absolutely delicious and full of flavours.

For the main, my wife took a free range chicken leg in cider juice. This was served with a mix of vegetables and a white wine sauce. A very good and hearty dish, not too dissimilar to a coq au vin blanc.

I had butcher's cut of beef on a bed of potatoes dauphinoise and spinach. The meat was slightly over-cooked but tasty nonetheless, and the sauce was made from Sichaun pepper - slightly unexpected in a small Normandy village but they made it really flavoursome.

Although we didn't really have space, we finished off with an assiette gourmand: 5 little desserts consisting of peach sorbet, mirabelle plums flambeed, red fruit mix, dark chocolate mousse and white chocolate ice cream. Great way to finish off a fantastic meal.

As my wife remarked, it's amazing that wherever you go in France, you will always find outstanding little restaurants in every provincial village, as if the chef had trained in the finest Parisian establishments. Well it turns out that this particular chef did indeed have quite the training, which includes Le Tour D'Argent and Le Gavroche in Paris,  and The Mayfair in London.

Total bill came to 65eur total. A must-visit if you are in the area.


http://www.lemadeleine.fr/
206, rue de la Madeleine
27130 Verneuil sur Avre
Tél. : 02.32.37.91.81