Chambre d hote La Roussiere

This restaurant is housed in a 16C building on a cobbled street in the town centre. The decor is chock-a-block with charming details: a large fireplace, stone window frames, exposed beams and colossal wooden branches from which the light fixtures hang. Your discreet hostess (who is also the pastry chef) and the chef, who can be seen fully focused and hard at work in the open kitchen, extend a smiling welcome to their guests. The seasons dictate the menu and the lunchtime lineup is a steal.

The sprawling estate never fails to make an impression: a Classical 18C castle, a 19C water tower, works of art, a hotel made up of futuristic pods fixed to a central metal mast and, finally, the circular restaurant with a living roof that is reminiscent of a flying saucer that has landed in the middle of the vegetable garden. Chef Jérôme Jouadé draws on his true affinity with nature and plants to practise his art here. He also makes the most of a greenhouse, a snail pen and an orchard, and does his own wild picking. Pollack, red meat radish and wild garlic; skate wing, white asparagus from La

In the heart of the town, almost within shouting distance of the castle, this small modern bistro, which sports a workshop vibe of wood and metal, is the brainchild of chef Adrien Barrier, who was born in Évron and knows Mayenne inside out. After stints with Yannick Alléno and Philippe Mille, this gifted craftsman curates feel-good, flavoursome food that hits the spot every time, be it his white asparagus with haddock, houmous and hazelnut crumble or the confit of pork belly, pressed aubergine and pork jus.

The name may suggest an antique dealer's, but despite the absence of old tomes, 19C paintings and 1930s objets d'art, you won't be disappointed! Set outside of the town centre, L'Antiquaire is a very pleasant and welcoming restaurant, with a façade completely smothered by foliage. Chef Jérôme Lebreton's generous cuisine with flashes of creativity is sure to delight the palate with its distinctive flavours, not least his combination of veal sweetbreads and kumquats. Worth noting: There is a completely vegetarian set menu.

Chef Clément Guyon is back in his hometown after a culinary odyssey that took him around France (notably Flocons de Sel in Megève) and abroad (Atelier Crenn in San Francisco). The timber of the façade and terrace are echoed in the restaurant's pared-back interior. The menu varies depending on the time of day: at lunchtime, bistronomic-style fare and a more high-flying slant come the evening, starring local and seasonal ingredients – served in a buzzy, bantering atmosphere.

On the doorstep of Rennes, in Acigné, this granite building on the banks of the River Vilaine is home to Sylvain and Marie-Pierre Guillemot. Sylvain prides himself on his "instinctive, up-to-the-minute cuisine" and aims to showcase the knowhow of cherry-picked local producers and growers. His beautifully plated dishes celebrate first-class ingredients such as pollock, spring asparagus or onion ravioles. The stylish interior leads out onto a sunny terrace overlooking the river, while the pleasant, spot-on service further adds to the pleasure of this gourmet interlude. First class wine cellar.

Fontaine-Daniel is the epitome of an old French country village and the birthplace of the famous Toiles de Mayenne fabrics. Overlooking a pond and the forest, this venue is housed in a former outbuilding of a Cistercian abbey, which became the hub of this textile manufacturing enterprise in the 19C. Chef William Blondel cooks primarily with local produce that he doesn’t hesitate to enhance with modern and creative twists gleaned from his own globetrotting travels.