Le Chene Vert - Vitré

We were looking for somewhere to eat a late lunch on 14th July. I know, not a good day to find a restaurant without a booking, it being Bastille Day and everywhere closed or booked solid. However, we stopped in the square in front of the station in Vitré and looked across the road to this restaurant and it appeared to be busy. We found a table outside, looked at the menu (while we had a coffee) and decided to stay. The food was simple but tasty and well presented. The service was excellent, no English was spoken (which is how we like it) so we were able to practise our French. In fact, the waitress complimented us on our French, (It's not fluent by a long way, and we make lots of mistakes). Perhaps it was the fact that we were on holiday and the weather was warm and sunny, I don't know, but this was certainly an establishment that made an effort. We were so impressed with it that we went back again on our last day. If you're looking for a good, reasonably-priced meal in a relaxed atmosphere, then this is the place to go. We sat there most of the afternoon, watching the world go by. The only downside is that it's very near the road and traffic, but as I said, we were on holiday and that didn't bother us. Oh, and if you're a bit hesitant about French loos, then this one was spotless, modern and a separate ladies and gents!

The service was good and friendly, even complimenting my execrable French! The food was at least as good as expected for a lunchtime, and the value for money was unbeatable. We weren't rushed at all, being allowed to linger over coffees and cold beers while passers-by toiled in 38 degrees C. Lovely afternoon, repeated twice in the following fortnight. Don't miss it.

Having a wander through the town of Vitre we saw what a sun trap this place was. So we sat ourselves down at one of the spare tables on the terrace, and awaited service. None came. More people arrived, locals by the way they were greeted by the waitress, and sat at a table nearby. Their menus arrived and their order was taken. Still we waited. More people arrived, also French, and the scenario was repeated. Once we saw we were being ignored by the waiting staff, we went next door to Les Voyageurs, which was packed full of happy people and where we were served in a jiffy. I've no idea how good or bad the food is at Le Chene Vert on account of never having been offered any, despite wanting to spend my money there to start off with. I'll know not to bother going there in future.

Passing through Vitré my husband and i decided to stop for lunch, it was 1.30pm on a Saturday and we were turned away from all the little creperies we crept into. We were about to give up when we saw Le Chene Vert in front of the station. To be honest it was a last resort and did not look particularly inviting but my husband was starving. I can honestly say that I ate one of the best meals that I have eaten in a long time. I chose an omelette ( I am a non meat eater and often find nothing on the menu but I could have had several dishes on this menu) my husband chose a tartine .........both were delicious, freshly cooked homemade chips, a lambs tongue salad with a homemade dressing and an omelette which was cooked to perfection, cooked but still soft inside . My husband's cheese toast with slices of bacon was delicious too he said. Our portions were large and unfortunately i was not hungry enough to try one of the desserts but the desserts in the restaurant also looked inviting. We paid about 23 euros for our meal with coffee and drinks, definitely worth it!!!!

Delightful young waitress, who when I gave her a tip and thanked her for looking after us so well, replied that it was her job! We ate outside to benefit from the weak sunshine and it was very pleasant watching the world go by. Called back later for a drink. The choucroute was very good - hot, and not too much of it.