We have been friends with Olivier and Benedicte Llobet since we moved to Chalabre.  They run the wonderful Llobet Restaurant in Mirepoix.  We met Benedicte when we were looking for somewhere to have lunch on Abi’s first day at her new school.  We had decided that Chalabre school was not working out for our daughter and her work was suffering, so we  looked around for somewhere more suitable.  After some detective work and advice from friends, we found a place at St. Maurice, a great little private school run by Madame LeRasle, with a really good reputation. (See future blog on this school).

We looked at the menu at LLOBETS and Benedicte greeted us at the door.  She politely asked if Abi had just started at St. Maurice school as she had seen us in the playground when she dropped her son and daughter off that morning.  I said yes and couldn’t believe that someone had already recognized us.  She was so friendly and pleasant and made us very welcome and we had a great lunch, all cooked by Benedicte and served by Olivier.  The two of them ran the whole place, with extra help only at peak times in the summer.

Every morning, I would drive Abi the fifteen minute journey to school, park in the square near the magnificent Mirepoix Cathedral and walk to the school gates.  After Abi had gone inside, I would head to Benedicte’s and have coffee with her in the restaurant kitchen. We would talk about everything, especially the children and their progress at school.

The  morning coffee became a daily habit and when I eventually bought a business in Mirepoix (Abigail’s Boutique), my first stop would always be to LLOBETS  for coffee and a chat. Some mornings, I would stand at the bar talking to Olivier and his pals about politics, work, food and life in general. It was comical at times to see some of the mens’ reactions to a woman actually having a view on French politics!

More to come about Mirepoix, the LLOBETS and other aspects of this medieval town!