They do it well in France — the lovely, lengthy lunchtime. Almost all businesses are closed from noon until 2 PM so that the employees can have a proper sit-down lunch and then digest their food properly. It is an oh-so-civilised break in the day.
Plat du Jour — plate of the day — is the lunchtime special and it includes your choice of a main course, bread on the side, a carafe of wine, dessert, and sometimes your after-dinner coffee. And the average cost of this all-inclusive meal is usually well under €10 per person. How brilliant is that!
The central square in Lisle Sur Tarn in the Midi-Pyrenees of southern France
We stopped for our lunchtime break on this particular day in Lisle Sur Tarn — a beautiful medieval town in the Midi-Pyrenees in southern France. The hot sun was broadcasting both heat and an intensity of light that made removing your sunglasses painful on the eyes. The only place that was, thankfully, cool and comfortable was beneath the brick-arched overhanging arcade that stretched around the square. And right there was where we chose to have our own plat du jour alongside some of the local folks.
Lunchtime in Lisle Sur Tarn in the Midi-Pyrenees of southern France
We had a brief ramble through the town for about an hour after lunch and were charmed by the combination of architectural styles and the tipsy buildings leaning into the narrow streets in many places. And we found as many of those cool and quiet arcades to walk beneath as possible in that heat.
A narrow street in Lisle Sur Tarn in the Midi-Pyrenees of southern France
The cool brick arcade in Lisle Sur Tarn in the Midi-Pyrenees of southern France
Lisle Sur Tarn — a definite stopping point for your own driving tour through the Midi-Pyrenees!
Street corner in Lisle Sur Tarn in the Midi-Pyrenees of southern France
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Posted on 19 June 2011