Despite vegetarianism now being a lifestyle choice for thousands who visit France every year, arriving at a chambres d'hote or restaurant and explaining that one of your party "est un vegetarian" is still pretty well guaranteed to provoke raised eyebrows and an amazed shrug, followed by swift recourse to the nearest box of eggs.
Some guesthouses however, have decided to buck the trend. Yet it seems that "les rosbifs" — despite their meaty moniker — are leading this culinary change, with just one French-run B&B making it onto the list. All have made a point of catering with considerable culinary flair not only for vegetarians' ethics but also for their tastebuds.
Le Gaudin, Normandy
Veggie friendly, can cater for vegans
The table d'hote at Le Gaudin isn't specifically vegetarian, but if guests explain that they don't eat anything with a face, then the entire four-course meal served to everyone staying that evening will arrive sans eyes, nose and mouth. Owner Clive's cooking is so delicious that it's unlikely any non-veggies will miss chomping down their usual meaty fare.
We ate a deeply flavoursome caramelised onion tart starter; followed by tomato, feta and artichoke filo pastry pie; a fine selection of local cheeses; and carpaccio of pineapple doused in a light syrup.
All this is served in a stunning renovated barn, open to the huge old wooden rafters. We were so full we barely managed to stumble upstairs to our spacious room with its balcony window, antique pine wardrobe and comfy bed.
· Room and breakfast costs €90 (£61) per night, four-course dinner including wine costs €30 (£20)
legaudin.co.uk, +33 (0)231 738870, email@legaudin.com
Jardin du Segala, Lot
Veggie friendly
This restful guesthouse, owned by British couple Richard and Alex Johnson, is set high up on a plateau above the picturesque and relatively uncrowded Lot valley.
Alex's vegetarian cooking is inventive and delicious – we had poached pear, toasted walnut and blue cheese salad, lentil patties with a hot tomato and yoghurt and cucumber dipping sauce, followed by a lemon tart to rival any you'll find in a patisserie. And don't worry about hidden non-veggie ingredients; Alex is clued up on substituting things like gelatin.
Three rooms are available in the large, rambling house, which has been sensitively updated, retaining its beamed structure and a big fireplace that you can curl up in front of with your after-dinner coffee.
We stayed in the attractive cream and green room, which boasted the best mattress I've slept on in a long while.
· Room and breakfast from €50 (£34) per night, four-course dinner including wine €18 (£12) jardin-segala.com, +33 (0)5 65344706 email: richard@jardin-segala.com
L'Arc En Ciel, Brittany
Totally veggie, will happily cater for vegans
Drive into the horseshoe-shaped traditional "cour de ferme" and you'll be shown into one of two self-contained suites in separate buildings. One comprises a bright airy yellow bedroom with small sitting room and modern bathroom, the other is on the ground floor of a converted barn and has a small double, a lounge area, table and chairs and a big double shower room.
Linda and Arthur Cutler run L'Arc En Ciel as a peaceful retreat where weary travellers can restore their joie de vivre with one-to-one yoga sessions and aromatherapy treatments. The countryside complements their calming approach with mixed woodland and meadows surrounding the farmhouse.
As vegetarians themselves, the couple are committed to offering fellow veggies – and vegans – a delicious alternative to the often infuriating French dining experience. They have an extensive repertoire of dishes at their fingertips, which are freshly cooked by Linda, and where possible with GM-free, organic and locally-sourced ingredients.
· Room and breakfast €39 (£26) per person, no single supplement, three-course dinner including wine €22 (£15)
vegetarianfrance.com; +33 (0)2 97512405; enquiries@vegetarianfrance.com
Tondes, Tarn-et-Garonne
Veggie-friendly and can cater for vegans. However, be aware that this is a working farm and some animals are raised for the plate
Deep in the countryside, Tondes is a working farm with 50 milking sheep, gaggles of geese, just-hatched chicks, turkeys, rabbits and two extremely friendly dogs. This is definitely a place for animal lovers. You'll get a cheerful welcome from Julie and Mark Sellers who arrived here nine years ago, renovated the farmhouse from its then derelict state and have been farming here ever since. Ensuite bedrooms are large and cosy, retaining many original features such as wooden beams, fireplaces and stone walls.
With a veggie son-in-law, Julie is well-used to coming up with inventive meat-free options, and her vegetable garden is packed with ingredients which are picked in a perfect state of ripeness to create dishes such as hot tomato salad with capers, spicy bean stir-fries, courgette roulade and fruit crumbles using plums, apples and walnuts from the orchard.
Sit on the veranda with a glass of chilled white wine, gazing out over fields of sunflowers, then repair to the little table beneath the fruit trees to enjoy a dinner bursting with flavour. It's bucolic bliss made real. At least until you rise at 5am to help with the milking. (Only joking.)
· Room and breakfast €47 per night, dinner inc wine €19
sawdays.co.uk then search France, Bed+Breakfast, Tondes, +33 (0)5 63945213
Les Chambres Vertes at Le Clos de la Chartrie, Loir-et-Cher
A focus on natural, organic food emphasising vegetarian dishes
Three large bedrooms are set in former stables along one side of a flower-filled quadrangle. Le Clos has been open just over a year and the whole house feels fresh and uncluttered.
The recent renovation, carried out by owner Sophie Gelinier, has been in keeping with the original timber, cob and soft, weathered brick, and, if it looks a little bare outside right now, this will improve once the newly-planted trees grow.
Solar panels provide power, and there's hemp insulation, a wood pellet boiler and underfloor heating as well as an open fire to keep guests toasty on colder days. Sophie also grows her own organic vegetables for the table d'hote.
Dinner usually starts with an organic salad from the garden. A typical vegetarian meal will continue with tofu or couscous dishes, combined with whatever's ripe in her vegetable patch, or organic ingredients sourced locally. Breakfast is simple and delicious - fromage frais, homemade jam (rhubarb/banana and strawberry), her own fruit compote and strong, fresh coffee, tea or a herbal tisane.
Beds are large and comfortable. There's a relaxing lounge where guests can help themselves to hot drinks and biscuits, delve into the small library and make use of the internet.
· Room and breakfast from €55 (£37) per night, dinner inc wine €22 (£15)
chambresvertes.net/en; +33 (0)2 54202495; sophie@chambresvertes.net
Janie's Place, Charente
Veggie friendly
It may be Janie's place but her partner Angus is the chef, and he cares passionately about his food, so it's probably best to try to arrive on time for your veggie dinner rather than fetching up six hours late as we did.
A veritable feast of selected mezze had been prepared, each dish tasting intensely of the concentrated flavour of the vegetable involved. Ravenous, we gobbled our midnight banquet by candlelight in the gracious dining room with its burnished cherrywood floor. Marinated courgettes with fresh herbs, warm tomato and goats' cheese tart, mixed vegetable couscous and char-grilled aubergines basted in extra virgin olive oil were followed by a couple of unctuously ripe cheeses and a homemade alcohol-soaked rhum-baba.
The villa itself, an old merchant's house, is built in grey stone and covered in climbing roses. Creaking wooden stairs lead up to a pretty landing with woodwork painted in Wedgewood blue and white. Our big bedroom had windows that opened out on to an orchard full of cherry, apple, pear, fig, plum, walnut and hazelnut trees. Tumbling into bed after our unconscionably late meal, we didn't see any of this till the morning, when we were waved on our way with a couple of stickily ripe plums each to keep us going till lunch.
· Room for two and breakfast from €40, dinner incl wine €24
janiesplace.net, +33 (0)5 45842635, janeyule@gmail.com
