Testing our new cards at "Les Bains"

Last night D and I decided to take our new credit cards out for a spin. We decided to eat at a real adult restaurant instead of some hole-in-the-wall student dive we knew we had enough cash for. So we looked online and found "Les Bains." Well, let me tell you it was wonderful!! First of all it's situated in an old public bath. The whole central part of the restaurant is undoubtedly where the pool was. In summer I'll bet it is pure heaven there. Just enough trees to offer shade in a lovely terrace. All the former changing rooms surround the central terrace and have had the lateral walls removed to form lovely intimate dining rooms. Because of the layout, it allows for the non-smoking areas to truly be removed from the smoking areas. This is the first time we have enjoyed a meal out where we didn't have to leave early due to awful smoke. Our waiter said that they couldn't wait for the no smoking law to take effect (January 1, 2008).

The menu was excellent. D chose a carpaccio d'espadon (swordfish) marinated in lime juice and coconut milk. Then he had a gigondin d'agneau with puree de pommes de terre. I had an escabeche of saumon with a mesclun salad followed by veau with a gratin dauphinois. All of this was wonderful of course. This chef is intelligent enough not to attempt anything in the way of fresh vegetables (other than salad greens) at this time of year. The "fresh" vegetables to be had at the market are subprime. (I haven't bought a single haricot vert because they're all pruny.) So he works with winter vegetables to make them sing. The portions were appropriate although we both left some meat on our plates because we really couldn't eat any more.

Service was terrific. Just the right balance so as to create a sense of attention but not hovering. So, D and I heartily recommend "Les Bains" to anyone staying in, or visiting, Montpellier. It's situated in town at 6 rue de Richelieu just behind La Comedie. To phone for reservations call: 04 67 60 70 87. If you're taking the Tram, take the blue line and get off at Comedie. You're 3 minutes walking distance from the restaurant. Be warned though that if you're counting on the Tram to get home, it runs about every half hour after 9:30 PM. We ended up just walking all the way home even though it was cold. We were happy we did.