Les Demeures de Valette

The setting – a glass-paned box flanked by a terrace looking out over the greenery – is modern and elegant. David Seguin's inventive menu is devised around high-quality ingredients. The cooking is flawless, the plating exquisite and the flavours well balanced, a case in point being the langoustine and scallop boudin with samphire, celery and bisque.

Tucked away in the Gâtine Poitevine region, this restaurant is a real find, so don't be put off by the inconspicuous-looking façade. Enter this contemporary bistro run by a couple who took an unusual path to get here: Benoît de Dreuille, from Auvergne, who studied at the Beaux-Arts in Brussels before honing his culinary skills in France and Belgium, and Margaux Voguet, a Parisian with a degree in art history and archaeology, who is in charge of service and wine. He cooks up delicious dishes using fresh, local produce – egg, courgette and capers; pork, aubergine and garlic. It's down to earth,