MINI GUIDE
Food tour of Brittany
COMPILED BY LORNA PARKES, WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM JEAN-BERNARD CARILLET. PHOTOGRAPHS: JOHN HARPER/GETTY IMAGES, HEMIS/ALAMY, PATRICE DUMONT, KASTELL DINN/PIERRE CARN, PHOTOCUISINE RM/ALAMYBrittany essentials The know-how
FURTHER READING
Lonely
Planet’s France
guide
(US$24.99)
includes
a chapter
dedicated to
touring Brittany, which
is also available as a
download (US$4.95) from
lonelyplanet.com. Polish
your understanding of
Breton traditions by reading
Brittany: A Cultural History
by Wendy Mewes (US$15;
Signal Books), and get a feel
for community life in the
region through Coastliners
(US$11; Black Swan) –
another French yarn by
celebrated Chocolat author
Joanne Harris, this time set
on a tiny Breton island.THE GREAT BRETON MENU
l Brittany is a paradise for
seafood lovers and you’ll find
lobster, scallops, sea bass,
turbot and mussels, as well as
oysters from Cancale.
l Kids will love eating crêpes,
ubiquitous in the region, and
galettes – a traditional savoury
buckwheat pancake.
l Apple-rich cider is a Breton
speciality, too. Pair une bolée
(a stubby terracotta goblet) with
a crêpe or galette and your taste
buds will enter gourmet heaven.
l Also on the drinks menu, you’ll
find local beer Coreff; lait ribot
(fermented milk); and chouchen,
an aperitif of fermented honey
liqueur.
l Breton butter naturally goes
into crêpes, galettes and the
outrageously
buttery Breton
cake – kouign
amann (pictured
right, atop a
glass of cider).TRANSPORT
It is relatively easy to get to
Brittany. From Singapore, fly Air
France with one stopover in
Paris. For those flying from Kuala
Lumpur, Air France will fly to
Amsterdam first, then Paris,
before heading to Brittany (from
US$576; airfrance.com).
Brittany’s bus network is broad
but infrequent, meaning that
having your own wheels is the
best option. Expect to pay about
US$90 per day for car rental
from Europcar, which has
pick-ups directly at Brest
Bretagne Airport (europcar.com).La Roulotte, fitted with shower
and heating, at Kastell DinnEating SleepingWHERE TO STAY
A quirky little hideaway just
outside Crozon, Kastell Dinn
offers accommodation in
decommissioned fishing boats,
a roulotte (caravan) and a
traditional Breton longère, or long
house (sejour-insolitebretagne.
com; Kerlouantec; from US$62).
Le Kéo adds a touch of glamour
to Île d’Ouessant, with fourindividually decorated rooms in a
coolly refurbished townhouse.
One features a traditional lit clos
(enclosed bed), and two have
sea views (lekeoouessant.com;
Lampaul; from US$87).
Plume au Vent, a two-room
b&b in Carnac town centre, exudes
class with mellow shades,
hundreds of neatly bound books,
knick-knacks, and polished cement
showers and sinks (plume-au-vent.
com; 4 Venelle Notre Dame,
Carnac; from US$87).