The situation requires us to keep our distance? Chefs are innovating! In Provence, even gastronomy goes down to the garden. From the Luberon to the Côte d'Azur, they go to great lengths to prepare gourmet baskets for a picnic filled with the flavors of the south.
In the vegetable garden of a locavore chef in the Camargue
From vegetable garden to picnic basket? You can't get much more locavore than that! At La Chassagnette, in the heart of the Camargue, starred chef Armand Arnal cooks the morning's harvest every day, drawing his inspiration from the 200 varieties of vegetables, fruits, herbs and spices that flourish organically on the estate. This spring, he shares his vegetable fever around a picnic: twenty privileged guests are invited to spread out in his enchanted garden to taste the day's bouquet of flavors, salads from the garden, local meat or fish, and seasonal fruit desserts. Between the cicadas and the gurgling of the fountain, happiness is in the garden!
In the heart of the vineyards in the Luberon
No good lunch on the grass without a good food and wine pairing! At the Domaine de Fontenille, in the heart of the Luberon, chef Michel Marini takes you on an oenological and gustatory stroll in the heart of the 35 hectares of vines of the estate. You can fill up on oxygen by strolling along the path that winds between the vines before visiting the gravity-fed cellar where certified organic rosé, red and white wines are matured. And we settle down in the shade of the hundred-year-old oaks for a gourmet "méridienne" (lunch) with sunny accents: signature dishes revisited with vegetables from the house garden, local delicacies... Not to mention a bottle of Fontenille wine of course!
In vintage mode around the Mont Ventoux
How about a vintage picnic? Starting from the Crillon Le Brave Hotel at the foot of Mont Ventoux, we embark in a 2CV, the mythical car of the 1950's, for a day trip on the small roads of Provence. Palais des Papes in Avignon, Château des Baux-de-Provence or art in immersion at the Carrières de Lumières, everything is planned to fill up with culture. And for lunch, you choose your corner of paradise, preferably facing a breathtaking panorama, Alpilles and Camargue or Mont-Ventoux, to pick the day's delicacies from the basket prepared by the chef. You can choose between three formulas: vegan, truffle or gourmet!
Feet in the Mediterranean in Saint-Tropez
All the flavors of the Mediterranean to munch on, with the sea as the only horizon! At the Cheval Blanc Saint-Tropez hotel, the art of picnicking becomes the art of elopement. Fancy a secret cove with your feet in the sea? The Palace's "alchemists" will find a little piece of the French Riviera just for you. A white tablecloth laid on the sand, a bottle of rosé wine in an iced bucket, all you have to do is dive into the ocean of Provencal flavors prepared by Chef Arnaud Donckele. Pan bagnat revisited, freshly caught sea bass, plump vegetables, "pine forest" salad with a hint of basil and oregano or even a mini Tropezian pie... After such an agape, it's time for the Provencal art of siesta!
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By Anne-Claire Delorme
Globetrotting journalist anneclairedelorme@yahoo.fr
