46eme Parallele

Staying in Saint-Gilles for this week, we selected the 46ieme Parallèle for our Christmas lunch. We very much enjoyed our meal. My entree was the house special and included lobster, fois gras, saint Jacques and crevette served with foams garnished attractively with viola petals; my description does not do justice to the careful choice and well-balanced flavours! My husband had the trilogy of Saint Jacques which were good.Our mains of Saint Pierre and Lobster were both pleasing. Desserts good too. It's an interesting restaurant and well worth a visit. As a footnote, I had booked in advance by email and received confirmation so we were a bit taken aback to find no one expected us! Thankfully we were made welcome and accommodated.

This gem of a restaurant only opened on 1 June, but it is probably the best restaurant in St. Gilles/Croix de Vie, if not the best on the coast of the Vendee. The mnu has both a la carte and set menus, but they are interchangeable. Lobster is served as a starter, a main course, or either/or. The lobster arrives already shelled. The owner is charm itself, arriving at resturant ownership from a financial background, and he speaks perfect English. His son is a Mitchelin trained chef, so the business is family owned and run. This restaurant only opened in June, and is heaven for a lobster lover. The restaurant is found opposite the departure point for the boat to Isle D'Yeu, beyond train station on Road to Sion. I would highly recommend the restaurant and would go back, if I am ever in the town again.

Having had a wonderful dining experience previously, our family revisited this speciality restaurant just opposite the quay to the Isle d' Yeu ferry. There has been a change of proprietor but we felt the whole evening, meal, ambience etc. was even better! The previous menu had been quite international, delicious too but with the inclusion of more traditional french recipes this gave an additional 'je ne sais quoi'. Although the restaurant is small, reservation are recommended and I would say although pricey the food and service is excellent. Suggest the unforgettable lobster a la Amorican and also the foie gras with lychee sorbet.

My wife and I with 2 friends visited 46th Parallel on the night of the Brexit referendum vote. It's name is derived from its geographical location, but it overlooks the outer harbour of St Gilles-et-Croix-de Vie, and the docking location for the Île d'Yeu Ferries. There is also a small Ocean view between the moles of the harbour. We arrived at opening time at were shown to a nice table by the window. We sarted with cocktails, Kir Royale or Mohito and ordered a bottle of Pouilly Fumé. My wife chose Gaspacho frappé d'avocats, citron vert et gambas rôtie (Avocado gazpacho with lime and roasted prawns. Her friend chose Thon Albacore mi-cuit snaké en croûte de sésame torréifié (Seared but rare Albacore Tuna encrusted with roasted sesame seeds). As my friend and I catch lobsters by Scuba Diving in the North Sea at home, we do not often buy them, but we decided to try the Lobster menu today. We started with Salade de Homard (Extremely fresh Lobster Salad).All 4 starters looked very appetising and were indeed delicious.For the Main course my wife chose Duo Bar et Gambas, salsa de Mangues, réduction d'oranges (Duet of Sea Bass and Prawns, Mango salsa with Orange Reduction). Her friends choice was Filet de Saint Pierre, artichauts barigoule, legumes sautés oranges / safran (John Dory, with globe artichokes pot roasted with onions carrots and wine and flavoured with orange and saffron). My friend and I both chose L,Indémodable et incontournable Homard d,Armoricaine (Timeless and indispensible Brittany style but locally caught Lobster). Again all 4 dishes looked and tasted excellent, all the fish very fresh as a lot of fish is caught off and landed in the Vendée. By now we were into our 2nd bottle of Pouilly Fumée.For desert my wife chose Mile-Feuille revisité, mousse légère àl'Anis et Framboises Fraîches (MilleFeuille reinvented, light Anis flavoured Mousse and fresh Raspberries). My friends both chose L'incontournable Mi-cuit Chocolat coeur coulant bananes-avocats (The indispenable Partly cooked chocolate heart with banana and avacodo sauce). I chose Salade d'orange à la Morocaine (Extremely fresh salad of Moroccan oranges).We ended up with night caps and coffee. Service and presentation were excellent throughout.The Bill for 4 of us was €320. Our share (€160) cost me £130 on my Post Office credit card, a rate of 1.23 to the pound. That morning I purchased €300 at a rate of 1.30 to the pound. The Brexit result was in by the time this credit card bill was dealt with, and the pound was falling, nothing to do with the excellent restaurant. We all thoroughly enjoyed the meal, ambience and company.

L'accueil tres chaleureux donne envie de s'installer bien confortablement face a la mer et de prendre le temps de déguster la cuisine excellente et...