Little Foodie Break in Lille, France
Aug 24th, 2009 by admin
[UPDATE: 14 September 2009 - you can win 2 Eurostar tickets to Lille by entering my competition. Click on the link for more details. You have until the end of September to enter. Good luck!]
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The PR company for Eurostar’s Little break, Big difference campaign recently invited some food bloggers on a culinary day trip to Lille in northern France. Little break, Big difference encourages people to take short breaks to Paris, Brussels and Lille on the Eurostar, (which can cost as little as £59 return, subject to all those terms and conditions!), introducing special events and experiences in these cities. The itinerary was packed with food activities, and it was hard to resist. I was initially hesitant about going, given the recent furore over food bloggers accepting PR freebies. However, I do enjoy traveleating and I would have wanted to visit Lille anyway to see what it has to offer foodies, so I decided to accept the invitation.
I love the research and planning part of any traveleating trip and can spend months choosing restaurants and places to visit (I’ve been doing this since July for the November Japan trip!). It was therefore a little strange to be handed an itinerary, even though it was entirely food-related, and to be guided around the city, when I’m very much an independent traveller. I had decided not to do any research whatsoever, so everything we did on Saturday was entirely new to me.
Lille city centre is no more than a ten minute walk from the train station. We wandered up and down little cobbled streets in the old quarter known as Vieux Lille lined with independent shops, cafés, restaurants and boutiques, – Rue de la Monnaie looked particularly exciting – as well as walking around two pretty squares, the Place du General-de-Gaulle and Place du Théâtre. The area is very photogenic and I loved the architecture, so it wasn’t long before I decided I would be returning to Lille again very soon.
We visited Meert, a traditional pâtisserie and tea room that has been open since 1761 (there is also the restaurant, see website below for more details) and sampled La Gaufre Meert, their famous Madagascan vanilla-filled waffles (€2.80), which you can also buy in small gift boxes in the adjoining shop. A few people also ordered their other speciality, the Merveilleux, a gigantic chocolate-coated meringue filled with rich chocolate mousse (€5.50). They have a good selection of teas, but I had a non-alcoholic fruit cocktail, the Intensive Cherry Cactus (€6.00), a delicious thick and definitely intense berry drink. I also bought a little packet of florentines from the shop afterwards.
The next stop was L’atelier des Chefs (a chain of cookery schools in France, London and Dubai where you learn to make two or three courses for lunch and dinner, then eat what you have prepared), where we were divided into four teams and following instructions from the chef, learned to make lunch for ourselves, which we ate at the communal dining table. Very fresh pan-fried cod lacquered with honey and beer sauce on a bed of vegetables was followed by tiramisu.
We were soon on the move again, to the regional beer and cheese tasting, which was held in the basement of La Capsule bar. Unfortunately, due to a family emergency, the cheese shop owner had to close his shop, so he couldn’t attend to introduce the cheeses. I was disappointed as I fell deeply in love with the smelliest and strongest of all the sampled cheeses, the Maroilles, and wanted to buy some to take home. I also liked the Crayeux de Ronqc and the Mimolette, a hard orange cheese, which I’ve had before in London. Philippe Olivier is therefore most definitely on my must-visit list for my next trip, as there is also the ‘cousin’ of the Maroilles, Vieux Lille, also known as ‘the Lille stinker’, which I want to try!
The beer expert more than made up for the cheese owner’s absence however, and he described in detail the four specialty beers local to Lille and the north of France. I’m not a beer drinker, but I particularly liked La Bavaisienne, an amber beer, and later bought a bottle from La Capsule’s specialty regional beer shop L’Abbaye des Saveurs, just round the corner. The beer later got its seal of approval from the husband patiently waiting at home for food treats. By the time we were back on the train again, I could barely sit upright from all the food I had consumed.
If I were to organise my own day trip to Lille, I would have a leisurely breakfast at Meert, then buy plenty of goodies from the adjoining shop. The bakery, Aux Merveilleux de Fred, that we walked past twice also looked very enticing, as did Patisserie Patrick Hermand. With just one day to explore the city and with so much to eat and do however, I wouldn’t attend a cookery course again. I like L’atelier des Chefs very much, and there is one in London which I’ve been to, but I would much rather dine in some local restaurants where I wouldn’t have to do the cooking! There are also numerous cafés and little food shops where I would love to spend time browsing, and of course the upscale independent shops selling clothes and interiors. The beer shop and the cheese shop would be essential stops towards the end of the day. And I would try to time my trip to visit the open market, Marché de Wazemmes, (Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday mornings). However, the Little Break trip was certainly an excellent introduction to Lille (thank you to everyone at We Are Social), and has inspired me to do more research and return very soon.
The day’s events are also told in this set of Lille photos on Flickr, which can be viewed here, posted in reverse chronological order (last photo appears first). You can also watch We Are Social’s short You Tube video of the day here.
Travel information:
We travelled courtesy of Eurostar in Leisure Select, which I’ve never heard of before, but it’s the class between Standard and Business Premier. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are included, depending on the time of travel, as well as a complimentary glass of champagne before lunch and dinner. The breakfast, strangely, was far better than the dinner. Perhaps we were too full from good food in Lille?
We took the 06:59 train from St Pancras, arriving in Lille an astonishing 90 minutes later, at 09:27. After a short ten minute walk, we were already in the city centre. It was very easy to walk around the little streets and explore the city, and there was no need for taxis or public transport as stayed in the centre.
We returned on the 18:35 train, arriving back at St Pancras at 19:03 UK time. It was a long day, but definitely manageable. I’m now debating whether to do a day trip, leaving slightly later in the morning and returning on a later train after dinner, or stay overnight and have a more relaxing weekend.
Contact details:
Meert
Patisserie – Salon de thé
27 rue Esquermoise
59000 Lille
France
Tel: 0033 (0)3 20 57 07 44
www.meert.fr
Opening Hours :
Monday: Closed
Tuesday to Friday: 9.30am-7.30pm
Saturday: 9.00am-7.30pm
Sunday: 9.00am-1.00pm/3.00pm-7.00pm
L’atelier des Chefs
74 Boulevard de la Liberté
59000 Lille
France
Tel: 0033 (0)3 20 17 17 50
www.latelierdeschefs.com
L’Abbaye des Saveurs
13, rue des Vieux Murs
59000 Lille
France
Tel/ Fax: 00 33 (0)3 28 07 70 06
www.abbayedessaveurs.com
Fromagerie Philippe Olivier
3 Rue Curé St Etienne
59800 Lille
France
Tel: 00 33 (3) 20 74 96 99
Food bloggers:
The food bloggers (and one wine blogger) who went on the trip were a mixture of old friends and new acquaintances, all writing about very different subjects within the vast realm of food (and drink).
Niamh from Eat Like A Girl
Chris from Cheese and Biscuits
Helen from Food Stories
Kang from LondonEater
Krista from londonelicious
MsMarmitelover from The English Can Cook
Andrew Barrow from Spittoon
Liz from Gastronomy Domine
Margot from Coffee and Vanilla
Michelle from Greedy Gourmet
Stephen and Kerri from Dinner Diary
Looks like an inspiring trip. Fantastic photo’s and those cakes look amazing! Loving your blog.
Great little review
I definitely think Lille can be done in a day, although it’s so much nicer to stay overnight and leisurely have dinner and breakfast too. I recently spent a weekend in Lille and would totally recommend the Suitehotel, which is spacious, modern and cheap! I love this little city and could spend hours upon hours wandering down Rue de la Monnaie, sampling all kinds of delicious pastries and cakes. Love your photos too!
I’m gutted I couldn’t come, it looks like you all had a great time! The Little Breaks are a great idea, especially when one is quite skint and can’t afford to stay over / use up too much holiday.
Lovely review, Helen! It was such a lovely day and so well organised. I am keen to go back and do a night so I can have a nice dinner. I think it would be a perfect break from London.
It was a tiring trip, but a really enjoyable one, especially the cheese & beer tasting, that was epic. The company was great, really enjoyed meeting foodbloggers and I believe I’ve made more new friends now
oh and excellent pictures too Helen
Guys, you should check out Helen’s flickr stream, she’s got some great shots of the cod sizzling in the pan!
So very, very jealous!
This looks to have been a marvelous day trip of food and drink! Speaking of marvelous, if all I’d had from the trip was a bit of the Merveilleux, I would be perfectly content – look at that monster! I will check out your Flckr set but only after I have eaten and cannot be tempted to book a vacation to Lille.
(Thank you, also, for the list of your food blogger/trip companions – I recognize some and the others are new ones to explore!)
Helen, you win the prize I think for first to post!
Wow, this looks like a great little break! That’s amazing that some of you get invited to do this sort of thing from a PR company – lucky things!
The Merveilleux looks fantastic and the cheese and beer tasting sounds like so much fun!
I am inspired to visit Lille on the Eurostar now for a short break – job done!
What a wonderful trip! I’d have taken advantage of this opportunity to check out the travel eating delights of a new town. Thanks so much for all the detailed information.
Your description of your husband made me smile, as mine is always waiting at the door, and the first question is invariably, “What did you bring me?”
I love the Eurostar, and will definitely have to consider more trips based on how long it took you to get to Lille – I kind of forgot how fast it goes. In the US the thought of traveling outside the country we anticipate many, many hours so have to reset expectations. What an amazing day. You’ve inspired me, I need to sample it for myself.
Helen, what a great article, fantastic photos and superb day out those patisseries look wonderful…
Chris
Enoguh with the praise – yes, a great day, lovely meeitng you etc etc but dont you realise i have near-on 200 photos to sort out!
I see lots of good food here! Helen, lucky you!! ^^
What a great food blogger event there! Love to visit Lille one day, looks like a great place and food heaven.
Great write-up and super photos. I would love to try that enormous chocolate-coated meringue! Dreaming of going to Lille now….
Wasn’t it great? (Not to mention extremely tiring!)
I’m thinking about going back too – and like you guys, I’d go a bit later in the morning and stay for dinner! Must bring a coolbox next time too…
You finished off nicely with a picture of the cute dog:)
I’ll have to put Lille on my list of places to visit! Love the images and your description of the foods there, drooling all the way as I was reading it.
Claire – thank you! We met at Niamh’s stall last Thursday, didn’t we? Hope to see you again soon…
catty – have to re-read your post now! It didn’t mean so much to me as I hadn’t been before, but now it must contain a wealth of information for my next trip.
Lizzie – gutted you weren’t there! You’re right, the Little Breaks are perfect when you don’t have much money or time. Can’t wait to go back!
Niamh – it was great to catch up with you in Lille! I can’t decide whether to go back for another day or do an overnight. If I went back for just the day, I would arrive for mid-morning and leave after dinner. Perhaps go mid-week too!
kang – thanks Kang! And thanks also for taking so many photos of me! Finally someone who can make me look halfway decent…
Tangled Noodle – that Merveilleux could easily be shared by two or three people. It’s a real monster and could mean you eat a little less for lunch!
Krista – good to have caught up with you and I’ll read all your Tokyo posts before I leave.
Dan – I think you’d really like it! It’s a great little place for wandering around in, and as I said, no need for public transport.
OysterCulture – I’m still amazed at how quick the journey was. It took as much time as it would have taken to reach say Oxford or Bath from London. I can’t wait to return!
Chris – thank you so much! I really enjoyed myself…
Andrew – haha, look forward to seeing your photos when they’re sorted. I also had over 200 but have culled them considerably to a more manageable number.
KennyT – you see correctly! It was fantastic!
Gourmet Traveller 88 – I think you’d love it! It’s quicker from London than from Switzerland though, in terms of connections, I suppose. Next time you are here…
Nicisme – thank you! That monster is still in everyone’s dreams!
Liz – very tiring but I can’t wait to go back! Is the coolbox for the food you’re going to buy?
Chee Packer – thanks! The dog was such a well-behaved one. He was almost posing for us and I took so many of him.
Helen Yuet Ling
What a nice review on Lille! I love going on Eurostar day trips, I go on Brussels day trip almost once a year and also my shopping day trip in Paris. After reading your review, I am very tempted to go to Lille for a day to just eat! Hehe, must find a day to go there soon!
Beautiful images Helen
Enjoy your day, Margot
Yoko – thank you! I really didn’t think day trips were that easy to do on Eurostar, but I’ll certainly be doing more of them from now on. I’ve not done either Paris or Brussels in one day, but if you’ve done them, I’ll definitely think about it. It was tiring, but so much fun.
Coffee & Vanilla – thanks Margot! Look forward to reading more of your blog now that I’ve found you…
Helen Yuet Ling
Such a lovely day. You’ve got some gorgeous photos! I am definitely going to go back too and explore a bit further.
Niamh – it was so much fun! I can’t wait to go back. Eurostar are doing a really good overnight deal too, which I’m going to investigate!
I wish to visit it, looks so cute. I love to travel and i hope i can visit it soon, make some paintings and take part of that wonderful athmosphere !
sorry for my bad english
thankyou 4 every post, and thankyou for your funny coments
Hi, Helen! We’re off to Lille for New Years (with some other stops beforehand), so I’m using some of your guidance from this post. Thanks for it! It’s great to get food ideas from someone I absolutely respect and TRUST when it comes to authenticity and food!!!
We’ll let you know how it goes!
Amy and Jonny