Hidden away in a sports complex in the town of Narbonne, France is Les Grands Buffets – what some call France’s best restaurant. It’s fine dining meets an all-you-can-eat buffet! Let me tell you about dinner at Les Grands Buffets, a restaurant famed for its chilled lobster tower and its Guinness World Record for the “world’s largest cheese selection,” among countless other indulgences.
Getting to Les Grands Buffets
It’s well known that reservations at Les Grands Buffets are typically made months in advance.
When Nik and I decided to take a trip to Barcelona we wanted to see if we could make a stop for dinner since this would be on the way. There weren’t any tables for two available, but reserving a table for four was no problem. So I asked our friends Maria and Clement if they wanted to join us, and luckily they did! I booked this reservation about a month and half ahead of our December 2 dinner date. Payment was required at the time of booking and is non-refundable.
Knowing we’d still have a roughly four hour drive ahead to Barcelona and a full meal in us, we booked a room at the nearby Novotel to stay the night. It was an easy, 15-minute walk from the hotel along a well-lit sidewalk to the restaurant. We decided to get pre-dinner drinks at the English pub located below the restaurant which gave a better view of how Les Grands Buffets is within a sports complex. The bar looks into a bowling alley, which sadly was closed by the time we were done with dinner.
The pre-dinner drinks also helped us skip the line of other people showing up for their reservations or hoping for a walk-in table. We were ushered to check-in and then walked through a sanitizing machine that looked like a metal detector you would see at an airport or sporting event.
The Restaurant
Upon entering Les Grands Buffets you were hit right away with the elegance.
The entry area was lined with mirrors, polished trays and serving utensils that twinkled everywhere you looked. I read that you should allow for three hours for your meal, whether it’s lunch or dinner. We ended up staying for close to four hours.
Our table was in the Max Le Verrier dining room, one of four dining spaces. Named for the French sculptor, the room features several Le Verrier pieces and one was situated behind our table. We believe it is modeled after Josephine Baker, the famed singer, actress and French Resistance spy.
The restaurant features two main rooms dedicated to savory items, along with a long, separate space devoted entirely to desserts. The rooms are organized by stations that flow from one to the next – oysters give way to other chilled seafood, followed by cheese, foie gras and so on.
The absolute highlight of the entire restaurant for me was the incredible lobster tower, along with the accompanying chilled seafood offerings. Check out the short video for a better idea.
The area with these stations then leads into another space with two large buffet stations filled with numerous chafing dishes, a carving station offering three meats, a dedicated duck station and an area they call the rotisserie.
The rotisserie offers upwards of 20 different fish and meat options that are made to order. The catch, no pun intended, is you can only get one item at a time but you can return as many times as you want. Options include two different styles of lobster, turbot, salmon, sea bream, quail stuffed with foie gras, beef tenderloin, bone marrow and so much more. You tell a chef your order and he hands you a slip of paper while you step aside to wait. Once it’s ready they call it out and you hand them your slip. It was rather efficient, even when there was a crowd.
Here’s a look at the menu in English:
The chafing dishes contained a rather large variety of cooked offerings including prawns, calamari, frog legs, mussels, stews and other French delicacies.
Equally impressive is the large cheese collection. Soft cheeses, pressed cheeses, blue cheeses, cow, goat, sheep cheese! You get the idea. Just a gorgeous layout and so much to choose from.
One really nice, helpful touch is that each cheese comes with a little tag next to it, so as you build your plate, you can grab the tags and make a few tasting notes to remember your favorites or even track them down later at a cheese shop.
The Dining Experience
A waitress brought over menus, even though it’s a buffet. The menu gave a good overview of what delicious foods await you. We also placed an order for a bottle of champagne, which at 25€ a bottle was a great price and was actually very good. As our meal progressed, we enjoyed a couple bottles of red wine and a few of us had a digestif after the meal.
Since we weren’t pressed for time or worried about not getting everything, I made a point to make each of my plates small and to really enjoy everything. Closest to our table was the room with the lobster tower and several options of chilled seafood. That’s where I started my culinary adventure at Les Grands Buffets.
I made my first plate of a chilled lobster tail and claw, a couple stone crab legs and peel and eat shrimp.
All three tasted delicious but the crab legs were a lot of work for little reward. I wanted more lobster so I went to the rotisserie for my second helping and got the warm lobster with butter sauce. Also amazing.
I should also point out that the staff at Les Grands Buffets were truly top-notch. They were friendly and incredibly attentive – clearing plates almost as soon as we finished. They seemed to anticipate our needs as well, bringing extra silverware when we returned with new dishes (like a tiny fork for seafood) or offering a wet towel after eating the lobster. And that was in addition to the many staff members stationed throughout the restaurant, ensuring everything stayed fresh and well stocked while being available to answer questions or help in any way.
Nik chose to start with charcuterie and made himself a plate of freshly sliced jamon, right off the bone along with a nice variety of cheese.
I also made a nice plate of cheese that I nibbled on throughout my meal. It was a nice way to take a break between main plates with a small bite of cheese every so often. A few of the more unusual cheeses I tried included a bright green one called Tomme du Berry au Basilic, a semi-soft, uncooked, unpressed French cheese made from raw cow’s milk and infused with green pesto. While it was interesting to try, none of us liked it.
That said, the cheeses on either side of it were much more to my liking. To the left was Brebis à l’Ail Noir (sheep’s milk with black garlic), and to the right was Montagne Noire, made from cow’s milk. Both were standouts for me. And the other three cheese on my plate were a solid bite as well.
Maria started similarly with a few pieces of pate and foie gras. I am not a foie gras person, but am willing to try it. There was one labeled as Crème Brûlée and Port that was delicious and absolutely melted in my mouth.
As I continued through my meal, I next went for a plate of freshly carved meats. One station was offering la côte de bœuf (a classic French cut of beef), suckling pig, and leg of lamb, so I took a portion of each. The beef was served medium, with a burner and saucepans at the station where the chef could finish cooking individual portions to each guest’s preferred doneness.
I had my beef cooked a bit more, though in hindsight, I probably should have asked for a little extra time. And no, I did not finish the whole plate. I had more food to get to!
Next was the canard au sang, or pressed duck. It’s a whole production that Maria captured on video:
While I’m enjoying all of this, Nik ordered the beef tenderloin from the rotisserie which was served with a piece of foil gras. Unfortunately no picture, but I did have a bit and it was very good.
Another station of interest was this truffle and foie gras pastry soup that looked more like a soup soufflé. None of us had one but I’d be willing to try it on a return visit.
Next for me was over at the chafing dishes. I had frog legs once before and I figured they were worth having again. I also added a couple mussels au gratin with aioli.
The frog legs were delicious and crispy. I enjoyed them more than my first experience eating them in Paris. And the mussels were delicious too. I would absolutely get more of them next time.
DESSERT
At last I was ready for dessert! There is absolutely something for everyone. This chocolate fountain right in the middle was what I would call the centerpiece of it all. Three different types of chocolate available to be poured over whatever item your heart desired.
The dessert section was incredibly large. Most everything was on a long oval shaped table with section after section of delicious looking sweets.
I started my last course by pouring some milk chocolate onto fruit, a cannelle, a chouquette (a hollow-like pastry puffs topped with sugar) and a coconut macaroon. I also devoured a light and fluffy French meringue.
Nik got an early start with a tart and candied apple (both very good) and a pretty strong champagne kind of sorbet.
Items ranged from small and large tarts to full cakes already sliced to flan to eclairs and I don’t even know what else. Literally, something of every possible flavor profile.
Also unique to the restaurant is the made to order Crêpes Suzette with a flambéed banana. So sweet and so good, though I wasn’t a big fan of the banana.
I also made a plate with a couple flans and had a scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream.
The Other Dining Rooms
Since I have the pictures, here are a couple glimpses of two other dining room options.
The Salon Doré Jean de La Fontaine is dedicated to Jean de La Fontaine, a French fabulist and one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. The room felt very grand and elegant and something out of era of Louis XIV and Louis XV. It is decorated with painted panels illustrating the most classic Fables.
The last room I check out was the Jean Baptiste Nolin State Tent. This room has a map of the Canal Royal (future Canal du Midi) made by Jean-Baptiste Nolin, cartographer of Louis XIV. It looks very grand but was by far the warmest room in the restaurant and felt almost too quiet. Because it was located on the other side of the rotisserie area, it had a glass door that slid open and closed to keep the noise out.
Not sure during peak reservation season, but when I made my reservation I had a choice of rooms to select from. If I go back, I’d try to eat in the Jean de La Fontaine Salon because I just loved the decor.
I’ll Be Back
As I’ve told numerous times in conversation as I recount this dinner, the price was not crazy at €65.90 ($77) a person and you can eat as much or as little as you want. There is no price discount for children, no matter their age. I never felt overly stuffed, even on the walk back to the hotel or the next morning. I made small plates, ate slowly, tried things and didn’t finish everything. It helped too that I got up to walk around and explore quite a bit.
Another deal that Les Grands Buffets offers is if you buy six bottles on champagne or wine, the one you drink at your meal is free. Clem and Maria bought some red and I wish Nik and I bought the champagne.
Overall everything was outstanding. I didn’t eat one bad thing, though I think I preferred the seafood a little more than the carved meat items and wish I ate more lobster. Next time!
Let me know if the comments where you would start in your Les Grands Buffets culinary adventure.