Aix-En-Provence, France
Where we ate, thrifted and drank coffee in the South of France in the Fall
Where we ate, thrifted and drank coffee in the South of France in the Fall
Incidentally, we just can’t stay away from France. After our wedding in November, we stayed in Marfa for a few extra days, just the two of us, then headed back to Portland to re-pack our bags. After a day at home, we left for France :’)
When we were planning where we wanted to go, we thought that somewhere in the 50º-70º F temperature range sounded pleasant, as did driving through the countryside and experiencing a new place together.
Neither of us had been to the South of France before, so we figured that late Autumn would be a dreamy time to visit for the first time: can confirm that it certainly was.
The days were mild and slow and we didn’t bring our laptops or DSLRS and took an actual vacation from all of our work for the first time ever. It was truly rejuvenating and inspiring, we planned for the year to come and pondered on a lifetime of dreaming together.
Dining in Aix
Maison Nosh for brunch, Mana Espresso for coffee and brunch, La Fromagerie du Passage for fondue and wine, La Méduse for dinner & drinks*, Farinoman Fou for baked goods and Li Palace for French/Chinese cuisine in an underground cave.
The main thing that surprised us here was that every restaurant mostly requires reservations for every meal: make sure to reserve a table for breakfast or because there’s generally a few hour wait if you walk in.
In all honesty, there aren’t endless stellar food options: you’d definitely think otherwise given the location and reputation, but it’s just not the case. This realization did, however, motivate us to seek out the best places that we could and still allowed us plenty of very enjoyable meals.
Mana was definitely the best breakfast we had in Aix. All of the craft coffee in town was from Mana Espresso and it was wonderful: If you generally drink 1-2 cups of coffee on aeropress, kalita wave, fellow, pour over, etc. per day, we’d probably recommend bringing a travel setup unless you plan to hit Mana every day of your visit! The next closest town for anything third wave is Marseille, which is about 45 minutes away. (La Fiancée is wonderful.)
Planning Your Days
Most restaurants and shops are closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, so be sure to plan accordingly. Le Petit Baron was open on a Monday night when not much else was, and it was a good spot for late appetizers and drinks.
Essentially every restaurant and bar has natural or organic wine options for about 8 euros/glass, which was so pleasant.
Maison Nosh
We got bright and sunny days all five days we stayed in Aix. It was warm enough to wear a light coat: I opted for a trench each day and it worked out well. Would also recommend a big scarf and a hat to help with occasional bursts of wind. These are the quiet streets of Aix during the week. So beautiful!
Where to Stay
We stayed at a spot called No. 8 Lifestyle Suites. It was an ideal location, right in the center of town. It was about a 3 minute walk from the nearest parking garage (every town or city in the South of France that we visited had an unbelievable amount of underground parking. Made it so easy to have a rental car.)
Thrifting
I thrifted these amazing bellbottoms from Blow Up Vintage. If you’re in the South of France and you’re into 70s clothes, it’s worth a trip alone. They had several racks of bell bottoms, racks of denim and 70s tees. Found so many amazing pieces there! New School Vintage & Jolibambi Vintage are a couple more spots to check out.
This was our street on a quiet morning. We were directly across from the most incredible bakery we’d ever been to, Farinoman Fou.
We got a sunset like this five nights in a row and it was actually magical, considering the time of year!
This photo is from Le Méduse, which was our favorite food and easily the best cocktail we’d had all year. We didn’t try this place until one of our last days in Aix and wish we’d gone sooner so we could have come back each day.
The markets are lovely, tucked into small squares around town.
These are the baked goods we tried from Fairoman Fou: Nick went across the street for them one morning and then made a pour over in our room and I could have stayed in that situation forever.
During our stay in Aix, we went to Marseille for a day trip, read that post next if you’re looking for more coffee, wine and food recommendations.