Sarlat Market

Wednesdays and Saturdays are Market Days in Sarlat, the largest town in the immediate area. Much like the other markets we have been too, with produce stands, meat markets, fish stalls, foie gras producers, you name it! But it is much bigger and therefore much more crowded with people. Coming down the hill into town is stop and go traffic, and once you find your parking spot (if you ever do) you have to trek into town, to find the goods you are looking for. The clothing, kitchen goods and toys pleasantly line the Rue de la Republique while the food stands are stationed just an alleyway's walk below on the Rue Tourny, Place de Peyrou, Rue de la Liberte, and Place de la Liberte. What does this mean? That the entirety of the market is centered in some of the most interesting Medieval streets I think I have ever seen. The old town was mainly constructed in the 14th century and has kept much of its originality-down to the narrow winding streets through town and the similar use of the square for selling goods (though they aren't bringing in live animals anymore). Walking along, with the masses of international people, you can almost squint your eyes and imagine these little lanes as it was back in the day, with the lights replaced by candles, and the modern refrigeration booths simply removed.

Taken on a Wednesday Market

Romantic alleyways

Taken on last Saturday's Market

Place de la Liberte

Two of my most favorite local products, Walnuts & Strawberries

French butcher-men

After wandering through the maze of people and stands, we had luckily worked up a lovely appetite, just in time to meet some friends for lunch at Chez le Gaulois, a traditional French restaurant but nothing like you would normally run into in the Dordogne where menus are normally full of foie gras and duck items. This food is traditional Mountain food-full of cheese, potatoes and ham, and all delicious!

When I say they served ham, I mean, they served ham and lots of it! Walking in, this front door, one is greeted by 20 legs of ham hanging from the ceiling and more upstairs where the waiters would go up and retrieve more ham for the ham slicer. Yup, the ham slicer. During the entirety of the lunch service (we were there for almost two hours), there was one man standing in the back slicing ham. A plate would pass through the window from the tiny kitchen with the melted cheese or the vegetables and he would load the order up with the appropriate amount of ham.

Ham Slicer in the back

Our menus were written on individual chalkboards and was fairly short, with about 10 total items on the menu-all including ham and all including cheese.

In trying to watch my acid-intake, I opted for the less intimidating option a Cassolette de Legumes, basically just a casserole of yummy vegetables with a cheese melted on top with a side of ham and a salad.

Other people on the table ordered the L'Assiette de Montagnards, a lovely melted cheese served with ham and roasted potatoes

Complete with special wooden spoon for serving the cheese

And the Tartiflette, a luxurious combination of cheese, onions, bacon, and potatoes.

The Tartiflette was a real treat and would be perfect on a cold winters evening. Though it was already fairly warm outside, a bite of this warmed you straight to the soul. I found a fairly good recipe to use for the next cool day!

To cool off after our warm, yet utterly delicious meals, we ordered some ice creams, made by a local regional producer. Our friend got his favorite, 1,2, 3, boules-a house specialty of three kinds of chocolate-dark, milk, and white. The white chocolate was surprisingly good for someone who doesn't normally like white chocolate. He also added a forth boule of licorice, which I was most definitely hesitant to try since black licorice is something I reach for less then white chocolate. But it was actually refreshing and good, I may have to re-think my licorice dislike...

1,2,3 boules + 1 more!

I opted for a single boule de noix, or walnut ice cream. Since being here, I have taken a fancy to anything walnut-especially walnut breads and desserts. This ice cream did not disappoint.

A perfect way to unwind after a busy morning of fighting the crowds and a large meal.