The Wonderful Avignon

Our final road trip of the vacation was to Avignon. Things did not start out that great for us this morning. We were about 2/3rds of the way to Avignon when I realized that we had neither the stroller or the baby carrier. By some miracle the Avignon highway exit is right at a big outdoor mall and this is where we found our first Toys R Us in France. New stroller purchased and we were back in business.

It was around noon when we finally arrived, and in Provence there really is no point in trying to shop between the hours of 12-2 because that is when all the shops close for lunch. Rick Steve's guide book has been our source for this trip and so we consulted Rick on where to eat. This took us to an off the beaten path restaurant that is down an alley that you would never find on your own. Aka the perfect place for lunch. Restaurant Au Jardin de la Tour. Wow what a meal this was.


The weather was cold and windy so we were unable to sit in the garden however the inside was even more beautiful. The chef Jean Marc greeted us and helped get us and little R settled in (including heating R's food for him).

The chef brought menus to the table but we didn't even glance at them. He proceeded to tell us the entree, plat du jour and dessert of the day. Well we had only planned on having a plat du jour before we entered the restaurant the descriptions sounded so wonderful we both order the full menu. J with the chicken and me the fish.

I know that I could never do justice in describing our meal so it is much easier just to show photos.

Our appetizer was a tomato that was seasoned and then baked for over 2 hours. Inside the tomato was a beautiful cheese all sitting on crostini.

My main was a zucchini flower stuffed with sea bream accompanied by some wonderful eggplant.

J had a cassis poulet in a curry sauce with a potato side dish.

Dessert was creme brûlée. Somehow we had made it an entire month In France and not eaten a creme brûlée. This made it worth the wait.

After lunch the chef sat down and talked with us, providing some history of the restaurant and all the places in the world he has worked. We were also provided with a small tour and a sample of a cake that he makes on a rotisserie.

By the time we were leaving the weather had gotten worse and was now raining. This is some thing that we were not prepared for. The chef then insisted that we could not take the baby out in the cold rain and instead he drove us to where our car was parked. We couldn't believe his generosity. Even when we told him that we were fine he would not here of it and ran to get his car.

This was one lunch experience that we will never forget and definitely goes down as one of the highlights of our trip. If you ever are in Avignon then you must go to Jardin de la Tour.

Oh I almost forgot one of the best things. The menu for the three courses was only 26 euro each an amazing price for such fantastic food and experience.