"We haven't been to the Dominicain very much this year, so today we went for lunch. I was determined to try the much lauded Cassoulet and my companion went for the menu as we were marking a special occasion. There is a choice of...Cassoulet Royal (which has leg and shoulder of duck as well as a little bit of tripe which added flavour I'm told, plus saucisse de Toulouse) or just Cassoulet which has a little bit less meat (no shoulder/manchon of duck). Being in indulgent form, I decided to go for the Royal. To say that it was copious is to understate the quantity. The meat was so tender, that it fell off the bone with a mere touch of the fork. The beans were creamy and luscious and the sauce just devine. I always try a Cassoulet, at least once, in Autumn and early Spring. And for this Cassoulet Royal, it would be worth travelling miles on foot. And after it, you'd need to walk another miles, at a fast pace, to work it off. I'm very glad I ordered mains only as it was plenty all on its own. My companion chose the plate of charcuterie to start. This was a large oval plate with pate, boudin, ham, terrine, a chorizo favoured roll -more tender than chorizo but every bit as tasty, and another roll which tasted of pork and ham and while unidentified, was very good. The charcuterie was accompanied by a basket of chunks of fresh local bread. The mains was faux-filet my companion is a lover of steak, and the expert's opinion was it was just about the best faux-filet to be had in France. It was served just on the rare side of medium rare and was tender and flavoursome to the last mouthful. It came with house chips which are crispy curls of deep fried potatoes, harrocots beurre, a herby tomato and garnished with a pretty little physalis. The piece of steak was extremely generous and cooked to perfection. It was served with a homemade pepper sauce. The menu included dessert or cheese and the chosen option was boules of very nice ice cream. We had one glass of white Corbieres and half a pitchet of a very nice mellow red. All in all this was an excellent, delicious and very substantial meal, charmingly served as always at the Dominicain. With a total bill, including the wine, we thought that was a very reasonable price. Our only complaint was that the food was so good, we were fit to do nothing else for the afternoon. And let's face it, that's a good complaint when you're on holidays, now isnt it!"
