A Little Bit of Lille

I'm an awful blogger. Really bad. But now I've realised the error of my ways (I'm lazy) and am beginning a new chapter in my blogging life story (a slightly less lazy one). Fact is, I hadn't eaten much that was interesting and so watching repeats of Gilmore girls became more appealing. A short break in Lille has rejuvenated me though so here's a blog about what I consumed there.  Starting with:

 Leffe Ruby

I'm not a big beer fan but as we were so close to Belgium I obviously had to have one. This was really tasty, if a little girly.

 Raclette

After walking around Lille for quite a while we came across a cheese restaurant.  We were very wary about going somewhere too touristy and this seemed quite busy with locals. There were obviously the usual French cheesy subjects on the menu such as Croque Monsieur in its various forms but the inclusion of charcuterie swung this for me. It was lovely although a pretty large portion for one (perhaps it was meant for two) and it went cold quickly. Good job I'm a fast eater!

 Elaborate Patisserie from Meert

Apparently this place is famous; I found loads of recommendations to go here before we crossed the Channel and yet when we asked someone where it was he seemed to have never heard of it. It may have been my awful French accent (although I spelt it out for him and he still didn't know it). After much fruitless wandering along the cobbles of Lille, we gave up and went to L'Office de Tourisme (that's Tourist Office for those of you that didn't do year 8 French). Oh they'd heard of it, it was very famous in Lille apparently... All that faff was worth the wait as the cakes here were absolutely divine.  These weren't just tasty sweet treats but works of art in chocolate, sugar and cream. Good job I've given up on my quest for a beach body this summer!

I had the above choux/macarons combo while my co-diners had:

 Caramel Choux Bun

 Elaborate Chocolatey Thing

An afternoon nap at the hotel (Balladins Lille-small, clean, basic, cheap and right in the centre of it all) had been earned by this point and after a freshen up we went downstairs to the next door bar.

 Beer Sampling at Le Trois Garçons

I'd read about this place as being a very good micro-brewery and it was by pure chance that our patisserie stuffed bodies could roll down the stairs to the bar. It actually seemed like a place more for eating than drinking as the only place to sit inside for just a drink was at the bar. The beers were nice enough but they were just too filling for me. Next time I'd be a bit more adventurous and go for the beer cocktails...

Dinner was on Rue de Gand which seemed to be the best road for selection of restaurants. We chose a restaurant which seemed to be dedicated to duck (my research on my return suggests it could be Domaine du Lintillac but I'm not entirely sure). My starter was:

 Foie Gras Pate

A nice pate but the side salad was unnecessary.

 Confit Duck with Fried Potatoes 

...and more of the salad! Aside from the salad overload the duck was cooked very well and the potatoes were lovely and garlicky. We didn't have pud as we were still recovering from Meert!

The next day involved a trip to the market which involved the purchase of A LOT of cheese. The speciality in Lille is Maroilles (which I pronounced incredibly incorrectly when asking for it-French fail) and as well as a bit of the cheese, we also brought home a Maroiles quiche. Before we embarked on our Wazemmes Market trip we stopped off for breakfast at a boulangerie nearby and had:

 Croissant and Cafe au Lait (that's milky coffee to you and me)

After a ridiculously long search for moules (a local speciality due to the proximity to Belgium) we ended up back on Rue de Gand and this time picked a random restaurant with a set lunch.

 Assiette de Charcuterie

Great but enough with the salad!

 Escalope de Poulet with a Maroilles Sauce

Another chance to sample the local cheese but yet more salad!!!! 

Tarte Tatin

A slightly soggy version of the classic-thankfully salad free!

After another shop, this time for cheapo wine in the massive Carrefour, we made our way back to London via Calais (a much cheaper way to travel than Eurostar and more convenient if you have a penchant for du vin!). Obviously a tiring journey such as this required a rejuvenating platter of cheese and pate before bed. Phew!

Blog Envy

The other day my friend sent me a link to a rival food blog which looked extremely beautiful. It's not that I'm competing (except I am very competitive) but when I mentioned the gorgeous pictures, my friend said 'that's something for you to aspire to'. Charming! But I'm not going to change. My blog is a bit like when you cook something that looks rubbish and tastes alright; it's rustic. Quite frankly my iPhone camera is not going to take the best photos in the world and there's no way that I could faff around with a proper camera while my food gets cold just so my blog looks pretty (unless someone offers to pay me a lot of money to do so!). You're stuck with the 'rustic' blog until further notice.

Sadly, no interesting eats this week despite my moaning last week:

 Babybel

Opened in the worst possible way. Disaster.

 Madras

This was also a disaster. I used a Pathak's curry paste but then put too much tomato in which left it not very curry-like.  So I added a load of other spices from the cupboard thus rendering the paste useless. It was pretty bland in the end. Disappointing.

 Leek, Asparagus and Parma Ham Tart

Remembered the leek this time.

 Carbonara

We saw Rick Stein making this on Saturday Kitchen and thought we'd give his version a go. It was pretty good although not as saucy as his looked.

 BBQ Burgers

We don't have a garden so we had to do this in a public space. Not really sure of the rules about this but we were very responsible and didn't burn the grass (unlike some other people around us and ourselves last year). No one seemed to be bothered and the police even drove past a couple of times so it must be alright...These were nice Taste the Difference Beef Burgers.

 Special K

To alleviate the guilt of the BBQ and the Chinese that followed that evening. Special K has magical slimming qualities (in my head) much like Diet Coke.

 More Tart

 More Carbonara

This time we used too much of the cooking water and it was a step away from soup. A happy medium between the two carbonaras needs to be found.

 Fab

One of the more virtuous of the ice lollies.

 Roll with Stuffed Pork and Mustard

 Muller Chocolate and Orange Yoghurt

One of my friends has decided chocolate and orange doesn't go together. Try telling Terry's/Dawn French (and now Muller) that.

 Sirloin Steak from The Talbot

I normally like their food but this was overcooked and as it was the most expensive thing on the menu I was pretty disappointed. 

 New Fave M&S Sandwich

 Pot Noodle Cup Noodle

I'm slightly ashamed to say that I really like these noodles the fact that this photo looks like something distressing has occurred in a public toilet bowl. 

 Scallops and Chorizo with Avocado Salad

Another old faithful but made with real Spanish chorizo from a friend of a friend's pig farm in Spain. 

 Plain Bagel

 Chocolate and Beetroot Muffin

My friend made these tasty treats which I believe were quite virtuous as there was no fat in the recipe. I'm sticking to that anyway.

 Jacket with a Tiny Bit of Cheese and Beans

Not great. It was one of those potatoes that tasted really potatoey; as if someone had cooked it with compost still surrounding it.

 Japanese Noodle Soup

 Papaya

 Toast

 Fish Finger and Salad Cream Roll

I'm not sure if this is bad for me but I'm going with no as Omega 3 is really good for your brains and stuff.

Homemade Chilli Con Carne

A nice hearty dinner. We added chocolate again which makes me feel cool and cheffy but doesn't seem to make much difference to the flavour. Perhaps it's too subtle for my impatiently burnt taste buds.