Where to eat in Northern France

ANGELA BIRD'S
Northern France

What to do and see within 90 minutes of Calais

Marshland near Tilques, a centre of watercress-growing; the Auberge de la Grenouillere, at Montreuil; Sablé de Wissant cheese (all © Angela Bird);
pavement eating in St-Valéry-sur-Somme (© Luke Smith)

WHERE TO EAT IN NORTHERN FRANCE

Here is a selection of restaurants large and small, grand and basic.
I have enjoyed these places myself, or have had them recommended to me by friends,
but I disclaim any responsibility for whether they will be to your own taste.
If you would like to add any favourite of your own, do let me know via the webmaster link at the bottom of the Index page.

There’s more to come – this is just a starter…

Area numbers relate to the section divisions in Angela Bird’s Northern France guidebook.

If you are in a place with no restaurant recommendation to go on, here are a few tips:

Check out a reliable French food guide, such as an up-to-date red Michelin guide,
Gault-Millau or Guide du Routard;

Watch where people are heading for in the largest numbers;

Find somewhere on the market square;

Ask tourist-office staff or other locals;
Look for a plaque indicating a place where the local Rotary Club eats!

AREA 1: DUNKERQUE, CASSEL & FRENCH FLANDERS

Photograph from restaurant website	BERGUES Le Bruegel A popular estaminet in a 16th-century building in the centre of this attractive walled town. You tuck into hearty local dishes, sharing scrubbed wooden tables with other eaters in a “ye olde” kitchen atmosphere, and are served by waitresses in Brueghel-esque costume. Open seven days a week for lunch and dinner. 1 Rue du Marché aux Fromages (tel : 03 28 68 19 19).
	BOLLEZEELE Hostellerie St-Louis The 3-star Logis hotel in the centre of a Flanders village is a favourite with British weekenders. Restaurant menus from 23€. 47 Rue de l'Église (tel: 03 28 68 81 83). Closed Mon-Sat lunch & Sun evg.	Photograph from hotel website
Photograph by Bonnie Robinson	CASSEL Estaminet T’Kasteelhof Fantastic atmosphere at this hilltop bar/café/restaurant near the windmill at the summit of Cassel hill. Traditional dishes such as carbonnade of beef and potjevleesch, and at least 40 beers – plus several local fruit juices such as rhubarb. Best to book at weekends. 8 Rue Saint-Nicolas (tel: 03.28.40.59.29). Closed Mon-Wed.
	CASSEL Het Kerelshof Another popular estaminet, this time down on Cassel’s cobbled main square. Hops hang from the ceiling, appropriately - since the menu features almost 50 beers. 31 Grand’ Place (tel: 03 28 42 43 02). Closed Tues & Wed (on Mon & Thurs it is open as a bar only).	Photograph from restaurant website
No picture available	HONDSCHOOTE La Xavière Good food in stylish setting near the ancient town hall of this little Flemish town. Menus around 20€. 1 Place du General de Gaulle (tel: 03 28 62 61 04). Closed Mon.
	LA MOTTE-AU-BOIS Auberge de la Forêt This 2-star Logis hotel, in a village just south of Hazebrouck, has a smart dining-room and sophisticated cooking.	Photograph from hotel website
AREA 2: CALAIS, BOULOGNE, ST-OMER & WORLD WAR II

Photograph from restaurant website	BOULOGNE-SUR-MER La Poivrière Small, popular restaurant in the heart of Boulogne’s ancient upper town. 15 Rue de Lille (tel: … )
	CLAIRMARAIS Hotel du Romelaere The restaurant of this waterside, 2-star hotel in the Audomarois marshes, near St-Omer serves good local dishes such as planches (like a ploughman’s). Menus from 16€. Chemin du Gd St-Bernard (tel: 03 21 38 95 95). Closed Sun evg.	Photograph from hotel website
Photograph © Angela Bird	MARQUISE Le Grand Cerf Traditional coaching inn in the centre of this little market town, with a stone bench outside on which 19th-century French novelist Victor Hugo is said to have sat. Decor is a bit dated, but welcome from Stéphane Pruvot and his staff is delightfully friendly. Dishes on the traditional side; menus 24-39€. 34 Avenue Ferber (tel: 03 21 87 55 05). Closed THurs & Sun evgs, & Mon.
	RECQUES-SUR-HEM Château de Cocove Good restaurant in this 3-star hotel in a tranquil parkland setting near Ardres. Menus from 26€. Avenue de Cocove (tel: 03 21 82 68 29).	Photograph from hotel website

AREA 3: LE TOUQUET, MONTREUIL, HESDIN & THE SEVEN VALLEYS


Photograph from owner’s website	BERCK-SUR-MER L’Impératrice Excellent dining in the smart restaurant of this 2-star Logis hotel set in a side street a stone’s throw from the sea at the rather Blackpool-like resort south of Le Touquet. Delicious menus, around 26€. Booking essential. 43 Rue de la Division Leclerc/2 Rue de Rothschild (tel: 03 21 09 01 0). Closed 1-15 Mar & 10 Oct-30 Nov, plus Sun evg to Tues lunch inclusive.
	MERLIMONT-PLAGE Brasserie de la Plage This shack-like beach bar/restaurant, right on the sands, is the place to eat the freshest of Dover sole and other fish. Menus 14.5-€-19.50€. Boulevard de la Manche (tel: 03 21 94 67 53)	Photograph © Angela Bird
Photograph © Angela Bird	MONTREUIL Auberge de la Grenouillère Long-term favourite with British gastronomes, this low-ceilinged restaurant in a village outside the walls of Montreuil is the place to linger over inventive dishes created by brilliant young chef Alexandre Gauthier. Menus from 33€; à la carte main courses around 30€. Booking essential. Rooms available for overnight stays. La Madelaine-sous-Montreuil (tel: 03 21 06 07 22).
	MONTREUIL Froggy's Tavern An in-town spin-off from Alexandre Gauthier’s Auberge de la Grenouillère (above), opened in 2007 by Gauthier, with William Elliott (of Le Touquet’s Hotel Westminster). Hearty grills are served in a fairly minimalist setting, in a courtyard off Montreuil’s main square. It can be very hot sitting near the roaring flames of the vertical grills. Most curious feature is the way the soups and the dessert sauces are served out of clip-top lemonade bottles. Two courses 18€; three for 24€. Open 7/7 for lunch and dinner. 51 bis Place du Général de Gaulle, 62170 Montreuil-sur-Mer (tel: 03 21 86 72 32).	Photograph © Angela Bird

AREA 4: AMIENS, CRÉCY AND THE WILDLIFE OF THE SOMME BAY
	LE CROTOY Chez Mado An institution, almost on the seafront, near Les Tourelles hotel. This long-established restaurant-with-rooms is great on seafood. Weekday lunchtime menus from 16€. Then 21€-36€. Booking essential. Open 7 days a week. 6 Quai Leonard, 80550 Le Crotoy (tel: 03 22 27 81 22).	Photograph from Chez Mado website

Photograph from noshoes website

LE CROTOY
noshoes café This beach bar, north of the resort, is a lovaly place for a drink or a snack, among the dunes. You can also book lessons in sand-yachting, rent bikes, or join guided walks and cycle rides. Open daily, all year. Hot soup in winter; ices and cold drinks in summer. Oyster bar and open-air evening meals (on prior reservation) in July & August.
22 Allée de la Grève, 80550 Le Crotoy (tel: 03 22 27 11 50).

MERLIMONT
Brasserie de la Plage This beach bar/restaurant, right on the sands, is the place to eat the freshest of Dover sole and other fish. Closed mid-Nov to end Jan. Boulevard de la Manche (tel: 03.21.94.67.53).


Photograph from hotel website	ST-RIQUIER Jean de Bruges Non-residents can drop in for a snack or a cup of tea in the conservatory of this smart little hotel. It stands almost alongside the magnificent Gothic church in a picturesque village near Abbeville. 18 Place de l'Église (tel: 03.22.28.30.30).
AREA 5: ARRAS, ALBERT & THE SOMME BATTLEFIELDS

	AUCHONVILLERS “Ocean Villas” Avril Williams’ café is a haven for visitors to the Somme battlefields. Just up the road from the Newfoundland memorial park of Beaumont-Hamel, it offers fish and chips, chilli con carne and other warming dishes. 10 Rue de Lattre (tel: 03 22 76 23 66).	Photograph from restaurant website
Photograph © Angela Bird	DOULLENS Relais le Risquetout This spruce transport cafe/brasserie stands on a right-angled bend, 2km or so west of Doullens. It is justifiably popular with the locals at lunchtime for its incredibly good-value menus. Risquetout, on D925, at junction with Auxi road D938 (tel: 03 22 77 06 79).

AREA 6: LENS, BÉTHUNE, BATTLES OF THE ARTOIS, & THE MINING BASIN
Photograph © Angela Bird	BUSNES Les Marronniers Smart restaurant in a small brick farmhouse deep in the countryside north-east of Lillers. Interesting decorative flourishes to the table, using napkins and shallots to create quirky figures, of even more surprising items like eggshells. Delicious roast boar in winter. 343 rue de Busnettes (tel: 03 21 54 27 14). Closed evenings, except Sat.
	BUSNES Château de Beaulieu Michelin-starred menus at Marc Meurin’s grand, 4-star country-house hotel outside Lillers. Simpler brasserie-style “fusion” dishes are available in the Meurin’s adjoining Jardin d’Alice, where you can enjoy three courses for 25€ (rising to 35€ at weekends). 1098 Rue de Lillers, Busnes (tel: 03 21 68 88 88).	Photograph from hotel website
	BERMICOURT La Cour de Rémi Casual modern décor in a dining-room with floor-to-ceiling windows, and interesting menu (by Stéphane de la Borde) for this restaurant attached to a small hotel 10km north-west of St-Pol-sur-Ternoise. Menus from 17/28€. Closed Sun evg & Mon. 1 Rue Baillet, Bermicourt, 9km NW of St-Pol-sur-Ternoise (tel: 03 21 03 33 33). Jan 2008: Chef Stéphane de La Borde has been nominated a “jeune talent”, or promising newcomer, in this year’s prestigious GaultMillau guide.
	GONNEHEM Estaminet le Sire Jérôme Busy, fairly smart place in an old presbytery, in the centre of a village NW of Béthune. Traditional dishes, and some pub games to play. 18 La Place (tel: 03 21 61 21 64).

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