Les Tables du Bistrot

So you are in Limoges and want to try some good regional cuisine? Or you are simply in the mood for a proper steak? Or you are a human being with taste buds and would like to take them for a treat? Then you will have to pay a visit to Les Tables du Bistrot.

The restaurant is a refurbished barn just outside the city, and the decor is rustic, but warm. This is a place where the locals go to treat themselves, and the place is rigged for bringing delicious food to families - not necessarily for quiet contemplation over an artsy platter on a white tablecloth while wearing your best tux. Don't get me wrong, it's a pretty high-end place, just not as formal as many french restaurants are rumored to be. I mean, you can visit the barn with the cows while you are there.

Not knowing much french, I relied on a combination of animal sounds, sign language and a little help from my friends to order - but most of all I relied on putting my trust in the chef, and I was rewarded with a tremendously delicious meal. I basically asked for beef and potatoes and let them choose how well done and which cut was best that day. The rest of the evening was a walk through flavortown, with a little detour to the juicy streams of steak county. I might have been lucky, but even in France I believe you have to walk for quite a while to find a steak that combines a flavourful crust with a juicy centre with such a high degree of success as the one I found at Les Tables du Bistrot.

I would consider a trip to Limoges, or perhaps even France itself, to be incomplete without at least one trip to this place.