le tasting room

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Friday 7 August 2009

Angers - Asleep in August

I'd like to have a grumble about Angers in August. Don't get me wrong, we love Angers - spent a year at University there, know it like the back of our hands, eat there lots, it's great for cinema and culture but.... in August, it's a ghost town.

How can a city like Angers afford to close down during the busiest tourist month of the year? Not only are all the decent restaurants closed (Favre d'Anne, Petit Comptoir, Chez Remi to name but a few) but half the shops are too.

Now I know it's a tricky place at present with the disruption caused by putting in the new tramway but - surely, this is not the month to go to sleep?

I do have sympathy for the rural restaurants closing during August as they rely upon local trade and by and large the French do still go away in August - but - a city that wants to put itself on the map - come on. Am I alone in finding this frustrating?

We are in the fortunate position of knowing Angers well but if you are a tourist visiting Anjou for the first time - you could spend an hour wandering around trying to find somewhere open to eat.

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