“Provence is a country to which I am always returning,” the English food writer and original influencer Elizabeth David famously said about this slow-paced paradise of jagged limestone cliffs, sharp sunlight, and an earthy, expressive cuisine.
Eygalières, a small sloped village in the Alpilles mountains, makes an ideal home base. Its main street, small but precise, features a chef-approved butcher and, nearby, an outstanding Friday farmers market, at which a Hugh Grant or Heston Blumenthal sighting is possible, since both have homes in the village. The line at Chez Emily Fromagerie starts at midday, where an all-female crew bring style and wit to the cheese and sandwich shop model, including a Frenchified hot dog that’s on my top-10 list.
Day trips to the medieval village of Les Baux and Villa La Coste, the Jean Nouvel designed winery, hotel, and luxury spa, hosting a mega art collection and the wood-fired cooking of the Argentine chef Francis Mallmann, are not to be missed. Similarly, a 5K bike ride along a paved pathway to Saint-Rémy, with a stop at Terre et Blé, where talented young bakers mill ancient grains to produce standout bread is a must. For an excellent espresso and Talking Heads soundtrack, try Colette Café.
Le Bistrot du Paradou remains restaurant theater at its best. Under ancient plane trees, the terrace bustles with cigar smoking Bugatti drivers, American families, and cute couples. Over a four-course, prix-fixe menu, dig the scene, delicious lamb chops, Côtes du Rhône, and a transcendent cheese course.
Back in Eygalières, bull-rearing cowboys — Gardians — on white horses, line the road as a thundering herd of bulls stampedes by. The riders then form a circle and sing to the sky as the sun sets over the jagged hills.
I’ll be back, Provence, now more than ever.
-- Kathryn Kellinger is a cookbook author