Restaurant Adélaïde, Carcassonne

By the time dinner rolled around the first day that we were in Carcassonne, we were struggling to find a decent place to nourish (stuff) ourselves. Amongst all those tourist traps that called themselves restaurants, there were just more tourist traps! I was starting to get worried (when I get hungry; I get grumpy), until we stumbled across this gem of a place, which was hidden way off the extremely beaten path.

I have to admit, the only reason that we initially entered the Adélaïde was because of the funky orange décor. I have a thing for orange walls! We were pleasantly surprised by the relatively “bold” menu (they had dishes other than cassoulet) and the easygoing and friendly waiter (who was unnaturally efficient for a French waiter).

Initially we weren’t too sure about what the food was actually going to be like, given that the place was near empty (usually a bad sign). Later, we just figured that this place just wasn’t on the main tourist hunting grounds.

The first evening that we were there (yes, we went back!), feeling like our arteries had been sufficiently clogged up by eating out 3 days in a row, both Hubs and I went for the vegetable fettuccini. Not a very adventurous choice but it was deliciously healthy topped with a rainbow of fresh vegetables. By then, after trudging around for an hour looking for a decent restaurant, we were so hungry that the food was gone before I even though about taking a photo. So no photos of the food!

On our second visit, this time we were ready and armed with our trusty digital camera, however charmed by the grilled calamari (my choice) and the grilled steak (Hubs’ choice) and a little unnaturally happy due to the aperitif (I have a weakness for kir), I completely forgot to take photos again!

And the desserts! We only had one (clogged arteries remember?) to share – a delectably decadent pear crumble, served upside down like a tarte tatin. Yum!

So if you’re ever in Carcassonne and struggling to find a decent restaurant, don’t miss:
Restaurant Adélaïde
5 r Adélaïde de Toulouse, CARCASSONNE


Service: 4.5 wooden spoons
Ambiance: 4.5 wooden spoons (hard to go wrong with a little Edith Piaf or Gotan Project playing in the background)
Total damage: roughly 40EUR for 2 (including about 4 drinks and dessert)
Food: 4.5 wooden spoons

Brasserie Le Donjon, Carcassonne

Carcassonne, the medieval city of all medieval cities (can you tell? I haven’t been to that many!). This place is magnificent from a distance, but maybe not as charming close up. The problem – tourists! Even in the off-season, during the day, Carcassonne’s Cité (the fortified old town) was overrun by tourist groups, making it unpleasant in some of its little narrow side streets. I hate to imagine what it would be like in summer during the peak tourist season!

Nevertheless, after all the tourist groups had gone on to visit the next old, charming French town on their 500-stop in 5 days itinerary, the Cité was extraordinarily peaceful in the evenings.

In terms of food, the region around Carcassonne is well known for its cassoulet, a rich mixed stew of haricots blancs (white beans), duck, saucisson (sausage) and other assorted meats (who knows what really goes in there?).

Given the number of tourists in Carcassonne, the restaurants can be very hit-and-miss! The Cité is full of restaurants; most you’d rather be missing than hitting! We ended up in Le Donjon for lunch one afternoon.

While it’s a little too “meaty” for me, Hubs indulged in a tastebud-awakening belly-exploding velvety cassoulet, dripping with calories no doubt!

I on the other hand, was eager to make up for the half-frozen salmon from the other day, and went for the salmon again. This time however, the salmon was perfectly grilled and Hubs left the restaurant dragging his belly along with him!

The service on the other hand, despite the restaurant being half empty, progressed at the pace of a well-grilled shell-less snail, that is to say, it was at a standstill! If the waiters moved any slower, they would have been working in reverse! This doesn’t mean however that they weren’t pleasant enough, just bloody slow.

Anyway, the verdict for Le Donjon in Carcassonne:

Restaurant décor: Cozy and dark, with a nice airy glass ceiling terrace section on the inside.
Service: 1 wooden spoon (they were nice)
Total damage: 34.90EUR
Food: 3 wooden spoons (a bit on the expensive side, but to be expected in touristy places)

Auberge de la Halle, Cordes-sur-Ciel

It’s been quiet on the WokandSpoon front lately. If I could, I’d give some excuse to say how busy I’ve been and all that, but I can’t as I’ve been on a short but sweet holiday!

Hubs and I spent this week driving from Toulouse to Albi to Carcassonne and back to Toulouse, stopping at charming little lost villages along the way.

One of our first stops was at a little old fortified town called Cordes-sur-Ciel perched on a small hill. It was nice for a change to see a town where people actually lived (roughly 1000 inhabitants according to the Tourist Office), and that wasn’t inundated by tourist shops or over restored to a sparkling brilliance as many historical towns in France are.

Being the off-season, it was really really quiet. Not many places were open for lunch, plus we were running late and wanted to have lunch at 2:30pm (the horror!), and the places that were open, had already stopped serving lunch. After much stumbling over uneven cobbled stones, we managed to find this place, Auberge de la Halle, which looked absolutely charming from the outside.

While Hubs had the escalope de dinde (grilled turket fillet), which actually came out well, I went for the pavé de saumon (salmon). The fact that we were miles away from civilisation, sea or any visual salmon farms should have told me that I would have been better off ordering bread and water! Ordering salmon meant that the chef had to defrost it using a microwave (we actually heard it go ding!) in super quick time.

The good thing was that the salmon came with lots of veggies and some really scrumptious hunks of golden potato wedges seasoned with garlic and herbs. However, the salmon was still a little on the cool side in the middle. We were in a hurry so I didn’t bother to send it back – I just ate around the cold centre! (Yeah, I know I eat raw salmon in nigiri but that salmon is usually a little fresher and hasn’t been defrosted in a microwave – at least I hope not!). Who knows, maybe the food there is a little better when there are more tourists and the turnaround is greater.
Anyway, I highly recommend the town, but maybe not the restaurant in the off-tourist-season.

Total damage: 32EUR (including drinks)
Service: 3.5 wooden spoons (out of 5)
Food: 2.5 wooden spoons (2 for Hubs’ turkey and 0.5 for my potatoes!)