La Bonne Etape - Amboise

My husband and I had a great final dinner in France here. We made our reservations through TheFork. We stayed outside of Amboise and were delighted the restaurant was a bit north of the castle so we could skip the center of town crowds and traffic to get there. The service was friendly and prompt by French standards. We started with glasses of delicious local sparking wine, and I had an equally good local red with dinner. We were served two amuse bouches, one was nut-based and the other was guacamole. The foie gras was creamy and flavorful, especially with the fig jam. There was not quite enough toasted brioche to go with it, but I just switched to the bread served with the meal. My husband had the fried burrata with salsa which was also wonderful. Watch it though because it is served quite warm! We shared two delicious main plates: the cassolette of hake with a shellfish sauce and zucchini risotto and the filet of beef with morel sauce and gratin dauphinois and tomatoes Provencal. The beef was tender and flavorful, which was a pleasant change from the chewy beef we had been served elsewhere on our trip. We finished the meal with a baba au rum served with a shot glass of what was billed as a mojito but seemed like pure rum to me. While I would have preferred a mojito, rather than drinking the shot, I simply poured the contents onto my plate so the cake absorbed it.

My wife and I booked, by email, to eat at La Bonne Etape on Sunday 26th June. We received the following reply: Bonjour, J'ai pris note de votre réservation. Cordialement. Verrier Myriam. We arrived on Sunday evening to find that the restaurant was closed and a notice saying they were closed Sunday evenings. Disgusting service.

Staying nearby and was advised by the hotel to head for Amboise for a meal, I am so glad I ignored this advice and pulled into La Bonne Etape en-route, because I saw the car park full, and the terrace full of diners. This decision was my best one of the day, service was prompt, friendly and attentive but the star of the show was the food … three amazing courses prepared and presented to a very very good standard, but at very respectable prices … just goes to show you don’t have to go to the centre of town to be the centre of attention … highly recommended if you are in the area, call in and dine here .. you won’t be disappointed… Bravo

Second stay at the (Good stage, tasty, generous and family cuisine like the bosses and their team. Comfortable room (#1 P'tit dej copieux :cake lemon, marbré chocolat et pasteis de nata fait maison (merci patronne ! Thank you again for your warm welcome... the next stay! Special dedication to the chef who depicted me with a jacket. Raym's Stef

Excellent restaurant, que ce soit en ce qui concerne la qualité des plats, le rapport qualité/prix, ou encore l'accueil. Une anecdote personnelle : nous avons mal estimé la distance entre le centre d'Amboise et le bon endroit où nous nous sommes rendus à pied. Avec la nuit qui tombait, nous avons décidé d'appeler un taxi, mais on nous a gentiment raccompagné... un restaurant à recommander sans hésiter.