La Petite Fringale Snack

Jean Sulpice

➤ Around Annecy, 303 rte du Port, 74290, Talloires-Montmin, France

Piatti • Sushi • Pizza • Mexicain • Asiatique

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"As I entered the Bistrot I was a wee bit disappointed with the reception from the young woman in glasses who had to work hard to give us a half smile. Nothing bothers me more than being led to a table that is not as nice as the empty tables and being seated. I said to her in French we would prefer to sit at the railing tables over the lake. She told us that she was sorry but they were all reserved. Now...I had made a reservation in the Spring for the first night at the bistrot and the second night at the restaurant gastronomique. As we did not really use the table to drink or eat for a few minutes, we were not aware until she brought a bottle of badoit that it rocked badly.Truly unacceptable. When I pointed it out...she went to get a piece of 'something' to equal it out. She was not doing very well trying to even the table when a young man...obviously the head waiter started to really work on the table.I stopped him and I told him that actually...we would prefer to sit at the 'still' empty tables looking over the lake that were..'reserved' ! He said 'Bien sur' and told the glaring waitress to put us at one of the tables that she had said were reserved. This is not how I expected to be treated when you are spending 500 euros a night for your room and ove 500 euros for the Michelin restaurant. The young man was a very good waiter with suggestions and such but it was clear that he was overwhelmed as it seemed the unfriendly waitress was the only one working. There were plenty of busboys at least. The view of the lake is nice but it is over the public beach so that there were a few people right below us who were making loud conversation and at that moment...I wish I wasn't fluent in French like my husband as he could ignore the silly conversation below. But...the food was very good. I had the specialty for that evening which was a 'poulet f'ermier. It was delicious as was the the 1st course for two...a lovely charcuterie for two. We skipped the cheese as we wanted to really enjoy that for the next night and... since the dessert menu had pretty standard fare....we opted for trois boules de glaces avec chantilly'. Very good but not exactly special. We would have enjoyed the experience much more if it hadn't been for the first few minutes. If not for that...we would have given it 4 stars. By the way...the 'reserved tables' were still empty when we left...actually ...the restaurant was half empty. I wish we had gone into Annecy for this first evening and just dined at the Michelin starred restaurant the following night."

L'osmose Du Lac

➤ 499 RUE SAINT BERNARD, 74290, Menthon St Bernard, France

Piatti • Vin • Salades • Européen • Français

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"We have been in Annecy for almost one week and have not been able to find any restaurant with food we liked, all restaurants seem to serve the same limited choices. We went to L'osmose du Lac in Talloires at the end of the week and were so delighted with the restaurant, we wished we had discovered it earlier in the week. The staff were welcoming, the wine choices endless but the best part was the delicious food we had for lunch. We began with gazpacho, which was served with a lovely mint sorbet in the middle of the bowl. The gazpacho was delicious. Our main meal was the special of the day, a mixture of chicken, duck, and veal served in a wonderful sauce and vegetables. The dessert was just as wonderful as the other courses, I had chocolate mousse (although too much for one person) and my husband had poached pear in red wine. The meal was reasonably priced, especially for such good quality food and service. Thank you! The #60 bus will take you from Annecy to Talloires."

Auberge du Boucanier

➤ 120 Allée de la Nublière74210 DoussardFrance

Piatti • Kebab • Cafés • Mexicain • Végétarien

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"We visited this restaurant on the last night of our time in France. We had met up with family from Scotland and were staying at Camping Le Lac Bleu. We didn't eat out much but decided to go out for a final night's celebration together.The evening started out great...we had reserved a table and it was lucky we had. It was packed- it was Bastille Day. The kids enjoyed the trampoline, the service was friendly (though not quick) and the kids' food arrived quickly and looked delicious. The menu was very varied, ranging from a tagine, to a curry, burgers, etc. Most adults at our table had ordered one of the steaks on offer. Most ordered them 'medium', I ordered 'medium - well', explaining that I didn't like blood in my steak! Unfortunately, everyone's steak was VERY rare!! So rare that my father-in-law had a choking episode at our table as he hadn't been able to chew the steak. My mother-in-law's steak was the most red and inedible. She sent it back and the waitress was gracious about it. It came back a few minutes later but didn't look any different. She asked for it to be replaced by a burger, which they obliged to do. No-one at our table ate much of the steak, even mine was way too fatty and chewy and came with a gross looking, oily lump of 'roasted veggies'. My brother-in-law did not enjoy his mussels, it was disappointing all round. My parents-in-law, who NEVER waste food, could not finish their meal.When we asked for the bill (only one waitress really spoke good English), we realised that they'd charged my mother-in-law for the steak, despite the fact that she had not eaten the steak, as on two occasions they'd brought out what she had not ordered. My brother-in-law and I queried the bill, and our waitress was extremely rude to us (in front of other patrons). She hollered, "In France, our meat is so good we don't need to cook it so it is like wood" and basically turned a simple query into a heated discussion. I can only imagine that we were not the only ones who had been complaining that night. We ended up paying the higher price but it definitely soured what should have been a great final night together. To top it all off, I found out that the toilets had no running water for washing your hands (gross on all levels!!!!) and my husband woke up vomiting in the middle of the night. A horrible, horrible experience. DO NOT EAT HERE!!!! The restaurant within Le Lac Bleu campsite was fabulous in comparison and I would definitely recommend."

Le Confidentiel

➤ 24 rte des Moulins, 74290 Menthon-St-Bernard, Menthon-Saint-Bernard, France

Piatti • Cafés • Kebab • Asiatique • Végétarien

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"Really cosy and intimate restaurant in the heart of Menton village managed by only 2 people. The menu is really original, although it conserves the tradition of the region mixed with other flavours. The portions are enough to be fully satisfied at the end of the meal. Having one waiter that takes care of everything can slow down the service in the peak moments, but I don't see it as negative point, rather to an invitation to enjoy the meal and the atmosphere"

Abbaye De Talloires

➤ 2 Chemin Des Moines, 74290, Talloires, France

Piatti • Kebab • Pizza • Cafés • Mexicain

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"Superb experience all round. The weather was poor, so we were seated inside, in a rather atmospheric and large room towards the back of the restaurant. The service was impeccable, the sommelier very knowledgeable and attentive, and the food was nigh on perfect. We each had the Menu Couleurs de Cézanne €109 pp), which consisted of six courses plus a couple of amuse bouche. Extremely well balanced and portioned, all were absolutely fantastic. One of the best meals I've ever had."