Bistro des Artistes - Honfleur

Our last night in Honfleur, on a recommendation of the owner of the bed and breakfast that we were staying at. She herself is quite the foody.  An american who married a Frenchman and built a really nice bed and breakfast in Honfleur.  The place she recommended was call Bistro des Artistes.  A fairly small place, about 10 tables, but the entire thing was run by one woman.  Anne-Marie Carnerio.  This woman was a tour de force.  She did everything.  I just couldn't believe what I was seeing.  She was greeting customers at the door, seating people, taking food and drink orders, bringing drinks and then she would dissappear for upstairs for a few minutes and cook that food.  Back downstairs and serve the food.  I had never seen anything like this before.  She did everything and she was no spring chicken.  She had a fairly limited menu but well done.  She gave us one of the 2 table with a view of the harbor.  The best seat we had had at any restaurant in Honfleur.

I had the the meal that would drive the FDA crazy.  Not allowed, steak tartar, raw beef and a raw egg, chopped by hand not in a machine.  Really good.  Was it the greatest thing that I've ever eaten, no, but there something about having things that not allowed in the US, like cheese made with raw milk and now only not in California, foie gras.  Maybe it's the fact that it's not allowed that makes me want it.


For dessert she make a lemon tart where she had brullee'd the top, fantastic.


The food was really good but it was really amazing to see this one woman, my age do it all, with grace and style.