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Time-warp
dining at the Auberge Ravoux, Auvers-sur-Oise
Try an exclusive recipe from the Auberge Ravoux
 ittle
seems to have changed at the Auberge Ravoux since
Vincent Van Gogh spent the last months of his life
there in 1890. But the time-warp feel is the fruit
of careful restoration, begun in 1987 when Dominique
Janssens took over this run-down inn at the Impressionists’
village of Auvers-sur-Oise, 35 kilometres north
of Paris, to create the House of Van Gogh. None
of the artist’s paintings are yet displayed,
but visitors can enter Van Gogh’s sparsely-furnished
room and watch a moving narrated slide show which
combines images of Auvers-sur-Oise as he knew it
with his letters and paintings. Neither a museum
nor a tourist trap - Janssens has set the entry
fee at 6 € (under $4) for all, with a
discount for families, and limits visitors to 150,000
a year - 
House of Van Gogh attracts pilgrims in search of
an authentic late 19th-century atmosphere. Nowhere
is this more potent than in the Auberge Ravoux restaurant,
an artist's café and wine merchant since 1876. Van
Gogh ate many a meal in this simply decorated dining
room, and apparently never sent any dish back to
the kitchen. Today, haute-cuisine trained chef Christophe
Bony maintains a lofty standard, serving dishes
that the artist might have eaten such as Ravoux’s
original terrine, ox cheek with carrots, leg of
lamb braised for seven hours, and chocolate mousse
in a big white soufflé dish. Admittedly not a gourmet,
Van Gogh did have enlightened ideas about eating,
writing to his brother Theo: “That excellent
fellow (Dr. Gachet) takes such pains to prepare
meals of four or five courses.
 et
the idea of just eating one, or at most two dishes,
shows real progress - in fact, it goes way back
in time”. Follow his advice by all means, but
there is no need to deprive yourself of occasional
outbursts of decadence such as the Auberge’s
exceptional chocolate mousse. Janssens has generously
shared the recipe with french-paradox.com.
Admission:
6 euros
Free for children under 18
Chef:
Christophe Bony
Set menus:
- "2-course meal": 27 euros
- "3-course meal": 34 euros
- Today's menu: 30 euros
Open to visitors Tuesday to Sunday 10am to 6pm.
Restaurant open Tuesday to Saturday noon-2pm and
7.30-9pm, Sunday lunch only (two services, at noon
and 2.15pm, in peak season).
Annual closing November 10 to March 10. Office open
for telephone inquiries Monday to Friday 10am-4pm.
RESTAURANTS
52 r Gén De Gaulle
AUVERS-SUR-OISE 95430
Tel. +33 (0)01 30 36 60 63
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