Autumn is the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, and the first crop of restaurant guides. Hardens, Zagat and the Good Food Guide are like new potatoes, ready sometime before the maincrop Michelin that we get only in the New Year. This is not a bad analogy, for while the first three guides have their place, none of them is, or would pretend to be, as nourishing and full as the Michelin Red Guide to Great Britain and Ireland. On the other hand, the Hardens, Zagat and Good Food Guides are not as starchy as Michelin either.

The essential difference is that the Wee Three (as we’ll call them collectively in opposition to Fat Mich) are aggregates of the opinions of their readers, whereas the Michelin... READ MORE »

Food archaeology
Pepper

I can confirm that humble pepper is in the top three things added to food. The others are water and salt. So should I ignore such a common ingredient? Of course not, it is the very fact that it has become such a common ingredient that makes it so fascinating...  READ MORE »

Il faut cultiver son jardin

Autumn seems to come later and later, and though I write this in the glaring heat of a normal English summer, I hope by the time you read this an Indian summer is in full swing. Let us assume a traditional autumn, this is the time for preparing most of your...  READ MORE »

In autumn, I will always eat

I thought it would be a nice idea to add one of my simple seasonal recipes; something that can’t be made at any other time and will always remind me of a specific time of year. Pumpkin soup is just that, a hearty but not heavy soup, just the colour is autumnal...  READ MORE »

Ma Belle France
Provence

To many English people, France is Provence. Paris does not count, as I have always felt that capital cities are little countries of their own. By any stretch of the imagination the English were not the first “invaders”; the very name comes from the word province, after all this was the first province settled by the Romans outside Italy.

Before them the Greeks came and after the Romans a veritable revolving door never seemed to stop. Goths, Ostrogoths, Arab, Berber, Catalans, Germans, and even the French. For nearly 80 years the Papacy was moved to Avignon. It was only in the 15 century that Provence became part of France. It is claimed that the wonderful climate and scenery is the reason that so many people fall in love with this area. I can not deny it is truly breathtaking, but I can’t help feel that this dizzying musical chairs of different influences must play a pivotal part. Trying to find hidden gems in such a well known, well travelled area is not easy, but...
 

Nîmes
This city will not come up first on a list of must visit places in Provence, for one it is tucked away on the western borders and it is also a very vibrant modern town. So why go? Having visited Nîmes as a youngster it shaped my view of Roman ruins that left me bitterly disappointed when I eventually made it to Rome. Read more »

The Camargue
The Camargue is that odd triangular bit on the map, at the top of which the motorway splits west to the Languedoc and Spain, or east into the heart of Provence and Italy. The naming of a Rolls Royce after this area is strange indeed, the Roller is man's skill at its best, the Camargue is nature at its best. Read more »

Arles
I know that there are far more famous cities in Provence, but Ma Belle France is about getting you to discover things off the major tourist trails. Why Arles is not on the map as far as destinations go is beyond me. Read more »