GPX - Foodie tour of Northern France

[grantmac]

After some offline discussions with some members and the thread ´´looking for a place to stay within 100 miles of Calais´´, I thought I'd put together a short tour of Northern France which only takes into account those Logis Hotels which are Coded ´´Blue´´ or above. Which basically means nice food but not cheap!

A 4 day trip starting close to Calais for those coming across on the ferry or Tunnel.

Day 1 Starting at the Chateau des Tourelles just south of Calais;
then day 1 from Le Wast to just south of Honfleur close to Le Havre. Overnight stop at the Hotel le Bellevue
Day 2 from Honfleur to south of Paris at the village of Ferrieres. Overnight stop at the Hotel de lÁbbaye.
Day 3 from Ferrirers day takes us into the Champagne region and the top quality ´´table distigue´´ category at le Relais de la Voie Sacree
Finally day 4 heading back close to Calais at a favourite of mine le Cour de Remi

Routes as follows:

Day 1



Day 2



Day 3



Day 4

 

[Ex-Call Centre Chimp]

Excellent, TY for taking the time and sharing.

 

[Pukmeister]

Does “not cheap” mean hideously expensive, or reasonably affordable??

I’m happy to pay well for a decent meal, but hate pretentious overpriced bollocks that leave you looking for a chippy on the way home.

 

[Wapping]

You need to check the accuracy of your placement cursor, Grant

Here’s a sample of a couple:

A word to the wise:


1. Avid placing on junctions and / or roundabouts.

2. Avoid placing on or under bridges.

3. Always try to place the point onto the road itself, rather than off to the side. This applies to dual carriageway / motorways, just as much as it does to points placed in hedgerows or fields.

4. If using a map different to say ‘Here’, recheck the point(s) position back in ‘Here’, assuming you are uploading the route to a Garmin device.

5. If using MyRoute’s ‘expand’ function, always check where the additional points have been placed.

6. If using the ‘reduce’ function, check that, by reducing the number of points, it has not changed your route.

In short, check and then check again. Then check when the route has been sent to the device.

 

[wessie]

Does “not cheap” mean hideously expensive, or reasonably affordable??

I’m happy to pay well for a decent meal, but hate pretentious overpriced bollocks that leave you looking for a chippy on the way home.

this place just west of this loop has the gold "restaurant gourmand" designation at https://www.logishotels.com/en/hotel/logis-hostellerie-saint-martin-2148 - Lee should extend the loop by an extra day!

they have set menus and a la carte. Set menus start from under 20 euros for 3 courses and the dearest one was 40 euros. We went for the 24 euro one on the first night and the 40 euro one on the second. They were both very good but you get a few extra inter-course treats with the 40 euro one such as a boozy pre-dessert palate cleanser. Their house red was exceptional for just 15 euros a bottle. It has their own label but was from a very good Domaine in Beaujolais. Portions are more than adequate.

 

[wessie]

oh, and the typical set menu price is given in the hotel description

 

[grantmac]

Does “not cheap” mean hideously expensive, or reasonably affordable??

I’m happy to pay well for a decent meal, but hate pretentious overpriced bollocks that leave you looking for a chippy on the way home.

If you check their websites a set menu is usually published along with prices. Can range between 35 and around 60 ex drinks per person depending on the place and its Logis ´grading´´. Like with all such things its purely subjective and you need to make your own mind up what you feel is worth the money. I quite like these style of menus where you have 4-6 courses.
If I want a big meal for little money I go up Brick Lane for a curry...

price edited to show only food, previous prices had wine included per person (approx.)

 

[grantmac]

You need to check the accuracy of your placement cursor, Grant

thanks ,but I did the routes using basecamp and then uploaded to MRA. No doubt some slight variances but I guess most would check this before they simply uploaded to their device.....

 

[EVskij]

You need to check the accuracy of your placement cursor, Grant

Here’s a sample of a couple:View attachment 306466View attachment 306467

A word to the wise:


1. Avid placing on junctions and / or roundabouts.

2. Avoid placing on or under bridges.

3. Always try to place the point onto the road itself, rather than off to the side. This applies to dual carriageway / motorways, just as much as it does to points placed in hedgerows or fields.

4. If using a map different to say ‘Here’, recheck the point(s) position back in ‘Here’, assuming you are uploading the route to a Garmin device.

5. If using MyRoute’s ‘expand’ function, always check where the additional points have been placed.

6. If using the ‘reduce’ function, check that, by reducing the number of points, it has not changed your route.

In short, check and then check again. Then check when the route has been sent to the device.

Will Grant be now known as U-turn Grantmac?

 

[EVskij]

… but I guess most would check this before they simply uploaded to their device.....

You’d think so, then again most aren’t tech savy, they just want a hastle free route, without any input from them self. As Wapping will tell you many a story, where biker mate decided over a pint of beer, that Tuesday morning him and his four mates…..

 

[grantmac]

this place just west of this loop has the gold "restaurant gourmand" designation at https://www.logishotels.com/en/hotel/logis-hostellerie-saint-martin-2148 - Lee should extend the loop by an extra day!

they have set menus and a la carte. Set menus start from under 20 euros for 3 courses and the dearest one was 40 euros. We went for the 24 euro one on the first night and the 40 euro one on the second. They were both very good but you get a few extra inter-course treats with the 40 euro one such as a boozy pre-dessert palate cleanser. Their house red was exceptional for just 15 euros a bottle. It has their own label but was from a very good Domaine in Beaujolais. Portions are more than adequate.

Exactly! This is what I mean, if you have experience at a place that you like then its all subjective. My personal experience shows that if you use the Logis Guide and their colour coding then you normally can get a pretty good idea of what to expect.
As said, my preference is for the ´´blue code. Last summer we took in 8 of these on our tour round France and at only 1 were we disappointed. All were between 35 & 55 Euro for a 4-5 course menu. Wine was between 15 and 30 euros a bottle.
For the top class on the Logis site - the ´´Table Distingue´´ you can expect to be around another 20-30 per person. Example is this place which we are visiting in Summer - Hôtel Aux Maisons - The link opens on its restaurant page and the top menu was EURO 60 per person.
Or this place, also a higher graded ´´table distingue´´ - Hôtel le Cheval Blanc - also on our tour for this year. " Menus at between 38 & 42 Euro but then they have a special tasting menu at 85 Euro. For Pukmeister, probably not what you ae looking for....

 

[grantmac]

The Logis website has been a bit of a lifesaver for me when arranging Club tours to France in h past and once you get the hang of it its quite useful. Say example you only wanted to look for lodgings in the ´´cozy´´ class or orange coding, log onto the site, scroll down to where it says ´´select your experience´´, then chose hospitality and the type of hotel you want. Then by clicking on ´´show on map´´ you see what is available. Then you zoom in to reveal all the places at that grading. Quite helpful if also trying to set up a tour.
If anyone still gets stuck, happy to help out.

 

[Wapping]

thanks ,but I did the routes using basecamp and then uploaded to MRA. No doubt some slight variances but I guess most would check this before they simply uploaded to their device.....

Maybe, maybe not

 

[Pukmeister]

Menus at between 38 & 42 Euro but then they have a special tasting menu at 85 Euro. For Pukmeister, probably not what you ae looking for....

I always try to have an annual weeks bike tour with my budget target aimed below £1200 on the food/drink and accommodation, so 60 Euro with wine sounds okay for a decent meal with wine. No biggie if it goes over budget but I’m not extravagant. I don’t do camping when motorcycling, its hotels or b&b only.

I don’t fancy having a “tasting menu” unless I know what I’m getting in advance, some delicacies are probably not for my humble palate I’m happy with steak and frites and a nice red.

 

[Wapping]

steak and frites and a nice red ketchup sauce…

Sorry, couldn’t resist.

 

[Arsey]

Will Grant be now known as U-turn Grantmac?

Grantback?

 

[Arsey]

I’m happy with steak and frites and a nice red.

Every night ?

 

[Wapping]

thanks ,but I did the routes using basecamp and then uploaded to MRA. No doubt some slight variances but I guess most would check this before they simply uploaded to their device.....

It’s not unknown for them to be placed in dodgy positions in BaseCamp either

 

[grantmac]

It’s not unknown for them to be placed in dodgy positions in BaseCamp either

Yea I know. Especially if you have just updated to the latest version. Points can end up floating in the middle of nowhere. Hazards of using Basecamp…..

 

[Wapping]

Yea I know. Especially if you have just updated to the latest version. Points can end up floating in the middle of nowhere. Hazards of using Basecamp….. then mixing it into other software, like MyRoute

Mended.