5 rue des Halles 30000 Nîmes
Opened in 1884, renovated in the 1980s, the Halles de Nîmes brings together nearly a hundred artisans and food professionals over 3,500 m². Fishmongers, butchers, poultry merchants, greengrocers, cheesemakers, bakers, wine merchants, French, Italian, Spanish, Japanese caterers… Here, there is something for both the taste buds and the eyes. And if we know when we’re going in, we know less when we’ll come out.
On the stalls, sweet onions from the Cévennes, homemade whipped cream, Petits Pâtés from Nîmes, pata negra ham or wines from Costières de Nîmes! Great classics, small local gems and local treasures coexist without fuss even on the same counter. Saveurs du Terroir, Julien Sanz’s boutique is both a delicatessen and a wine cellar. Artisanal foie gras, caviars and truffles take pride of place alongside wines from Costières de Nîmes. Julien’s latest favorite: “the Ampelographic Amitié cuvée from Domaine de Virgile, a cuvée of friends perfect for a prime rib to share.”
Same story at the Crèmerie Philip Bonnafous where the owner happily mixes cheese and wines from Costières de Nîmes in all colors because if “reds always go with everything, more and more customers are asking for a white for blue-veined cheeses or a rosé for the pélardon.” Inexhaustible, Vincent Vergne, cheesemaker-refiner and also member of the CrocoTeam, also varies the pairings. We tell you about it here.
Les Halles de Nîmes is also market cuisine with several tables that roast, grill, brown or fry the flavors of the stalls. On the slate, the wine often has the accent of Costières de Nîmes, as at La Pie qui Couette : “Here, we serve Clos des Boutes wines,” says Emmanuel Leblay, the chef. As it is a wine that has a lot of aromas, it is fabulous with a pluma de pata negra, which we cook here with a ginger sauce.”
Halles de Nîmes
5 rue des Halles 30000 Nîmes
04 66 21 52 49 – www.leshallesdenimes.com
Photo (copyright Halles de Nîmes): detail of the poster signed by José Pirès for the 130th anniversary of the Halles de Nîmes.