Eating with Your Fingers: A Medieval Banquet in Amboise
Written: Mar 05 '00 (Updated Mar 08 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Totally silly unpretentious evening
Cons: Not gourmet food; if you are interested in gourmet food, try the regular menu
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| YentaKvetch's Full Review: Loire Valley |
If you spend a month in the Loire Valley, as YentaKvetch did in the summer of 1997, you will soon have your fill of châteaux and will look for a change of pace. YentaKvetch's recommendation: Try the Dinner Spectacle Renaissance sponsored by Le Manoir St. Thomas in Amboise.
While the brochure did state that the spectacle would be held at the Chateau d'Amboise, Chef Francois Le Coz had not adequately advertised his foray into the entertainment field. Since not enough people had signed up, the dinner was held at Le Manoir St. Thomas. When making reservations, YentaKvetch was told to call back to see where the dinner would be held. While YentaKvetch initially thought that not having dinner at Le Chateau would take away from the ambiance, she was wrong.
Le Manoir St. Thomas in Amboise is located at Place Richelieu not far from the tourist attractions of the Château and Clos Luce While the restaurant had an impressive regular menu and a very romantic garden, YentaKvetch was there for the special dinner, which was held upstairs in specially designated room in the main restaurant. The first couple to enter was assigned to the chairs for the king and queen and were designated royalty for the evening. It was all lighthearted.
The food? Well, the menu at Le Manoir St. Thomas is impressive, but those eating the renaissance dinner didn't get to sample it. They got to eat a recreated "Renaissance" meal, in the Renaissance manner: with our fingers. While it was not haute cuisine, it was fun.
The group was entertained by a magician and troubadour dressed appropriately in costume. The magician was very good and even put up with YentaKvetch when she checked his cards to see if they were a special magician's deck (they weren't) and spilled them on the floor. Chef Le Coz joined in the fun, bringing one course to the table on a platter dressed up with a pheasant (no we were not served pheasant). The only thing lacking was straw on the floor and some hounds so we could throw our bones to them when we were done. The meal finished with some deliciously spiced poached pears.
While the dinner and entertainment are in French, Chef Le Coz speaks excellent English and will help you along if you are linguistically challenged. Not speaking French is, however, no bar to enjoying the entertainment.
Manoir St. Thomas Place Richelieu 37400 Amboise, France Tel.: 33-02-47-57-22-52 Price about 260 Fr. Unfortunately, YentaKvetch has been informed that the special dinners are now organized only for groups. It might still be worth a telephone call to the restaurant to see if there is a group you can join. Alternatively, you might want to check with tourist information in either Amboise or Tours.
There is a website for Manoir St. Thomas. Further information can be found on the web in French only at http://www.amboise-valdeloire.com/francais/fiches/thomas.htm
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
YentaKvetch
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Member: Lauren Kahn
Location: McLean, Virginia
Reviews written: 71
Trusted by: 97 members
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