The farmhouse is self-catering and is really well equipped for cooking and eating, both inside and out. Créon, our local town, has become a magnet for artisanal food shops of late, which suits us all well. We now have several big bakeries, a top butcher and excellent fishmonger, two fresh fruit and veg stores, and super delis all within a five minute drive. Plus there’s a top food market every Wednesday morning in Créon, within walking distance.
There are four stores you need to know about. See Google maps for their opening hours:
Carrefour supermarket is open Mon-Sat and Sunday morning.
The butcher ‘Tout le Monde s'y retrouve' is highly recommended, as well as for fish, fruit, veg, deli and cheese.
The bakery Le Fournil de Créon is near the end of our road, Rue Bauduc. Open 7 days a week, 7am-8pm.
They opened Les Halles next door, which has fresh fruit and veg plus a deli, also open 7 days a week. There’s a bar and café there too with good food to eat in or to take away.
Here is a map of Créon with places of note, with these essential places below:
The supermarket - Carrefour (A) - and fuel
Tout le Monde s'y retrouve (B) - meat, fish, fruit & veg
Le Fournil de Créon (D) - boulangerie
Les Halles (H) next door - deli, fruit & veg, bar
More details on these underneath the map.
As well as food shopping (to go with our wine) other notable places are (I) Chez Titut restaurant, (Q) the 470 bus stop to the centre of Bordeaux and back, every hour on the hour, 7am-10pm Monday to Friday, and (P) the bicycle hire shop, next to the 50km cycle track. See 'Things to do' for that.
Supermarket
Carrefour is close by and is open 9am to 7.45pm from Monday to Saturday and on Sunday mornings from 9am to 12pm only. No free carrier bags so take one from the house or buy new ones there.
Turn right at the roundabout at the end of our road (Rue Bauduc) and go 800m to the next roundabout. You can't miss the big Carrefour down on your left. We buy all the usual stuff here; note that the fresh milk has blue tops for semi-skinned and red for full cream milk (unlike the UK). The Reflets de France house brand is very good. Good cheese selection, tasty ’en plein air’ free range chicken and magret de canard on the shelves, and a good meat counter for steak haché ’en vrac’ (minced beef) plus good lamb, beef, pork, chicken and sausages.
Bakeries - boulangeries
Le Fournil de Créon. Open 7am till 8pm, 7 days a week (Sundays 7pm).
Turn right at the roundabout at the end of our road, and it's 100m up on the right. The baguettes, croissants and so on are really good and there's a huge choice. Plus delicious desserts, such as the apple tarts.
Next door and under the same ownership is the fine new emporium called Les Halles (pronounced 'lay al'). Les Halles sells fresh fruit and veg, has a large deli and there's a wine shop and bar. The bar gets busy in the evenings and there's sometimes live music on fridays.
Maison Catarino. Also open 7am till 8pm, days a week, 7am till 12pm Sundays. Excellent bread and much more. It's in Créon on the 'ring road', direction Bordeaux and Libourne. Turn left at the end of our road, then right after 50m at the Gendarmerie roundabout and it's up on the right after about 250m. There is also a bakery in the town square which is quite good.
Butcher, fishmonger, fruit and veg, cheese
Tout le Monde s'y retrouve. Open 9am-12.30pm, 2.30pm-7.30pm. Closed Sunday and Monday.
Fabulous fish and delicious meat, along with a very good selection of fruit and vegetables. At the butcher’s counter, ask for the entrecôte ’façon Quinney/Bauduc’ from the older chap in the cap (he's the owner) and you should be cut a delicious, neatly trimmed steak about 5-6 cms thick.
The fish counter is superb, with a huge choice of fish and shellfish. We always ask for the fish to be prepared, as they are expert at it and life is too short to peel the skins off Dover sole or remove the membrane from monkish tails, or to fillet a hake. The sauces in the packs, like beurre blanc, are good too. They will also prepare a platter of Fruits de Mer of your choice, as well as a tray of opened oysters, all served on ice.
Go to the end of our road, turn right at the roundabout and it's 800m to the Carrefour roundabout. Turn right (opposite the turning to Carrefour), direction Cadillac and Haux. 150m along, after several small entrances, take the left turn into the area with an Allianz sign on the first building. Go down there and turn left at La Poste depot, and the parking at Tout le Monde is on your right.
Fruit, veg and deli
Les Halles de Créon is next door to the bakery Le Fournil and under the same ownership. It has the advantage of being open on Sunday and Monday, and the quality of the fresh fruit and veg is high. There's also a decent deli offering charcuterie, cheese and all sorts of stuff in the central food area.
Cheese
Tout le Monde s'y retrouve, Les Halles de Créon and Carrefour all offer a wide range. Also the 'C Cheese' (!) stand at the market on wednesday.
L’Atrappe Souris. A good choice on a corner in the central square of Créon. Usually open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-12pm, 4-7pm.
Pizza
Pizza Aroma. The best takeaway pizzas from a wood-fired oven. You have to call well in advance to book a time slot to collect that evening, they're that good.
Créon market on Wednesday morning
Open 8am - 12.30pm. It has been held every Wednesday since 1315, allegedly, and is worth a visit. It's one of the best markets in the region. The parking around the town gets very bunged up so if you go by car, one option is to park half on the pavement at the end of or road.
We often go to the large fish stall on the far side of the square, called Diego.
In general, the best stuff is seasonal, often sold direct by the growers themselves. Do take care with buying some things, like cheeses and cured meats, as they can be priced on the high side.
Oysters on Sunday morning
There are several producers who come from the Atlantic coast to sell their oysters on Sundays, and we usually go to the girl from Cap Ferret who has a stand outside Maison Catarino on a Sunday morning. She will open them for €1.50 a dozen if required – so take a large plate and leave it with her for 15 minutes or so.
Oysters can be a bit ‘milky’ or 'gras' in the summer months, so they're even better from September to June in our opinion, depending on your taste. Serve them cold with freshly squeezed lemon, or echalotte vinegar and finely cut shallots. Or try them with a small piece of Roquefort, and grilled under a hot grill for two minutes.
Excellent oysters are also available Tuesday-Saturday from Tout le Monde (see above), and opened if required with an hour or so's notice. They serve them, ready for collection, on ice. Good to combine with other fruits de mers too.