After numerous buffets, my husband and I wanted our last dinner on Praslin to be a special occasion. Staying at La Reserve but having a car for the day we decided that the proximity of L’Archipel would be perfect. Checking out the restaurant during the...day, we also found the setting to be beautiful and the a la carte menu mouth-watering (if pricy)…!
I had emailed the FB manager, Pierre Lamy, and he could not have been more accommodating, even offering to set up a special table for us right on the beach. In the event, there were some heavy downpours in the afternoon and Pierre promptly emailed to inform us that the beach restaurant would be closed that night, but that he would be happy to arrange a lovely table for us by the pool or on the veranda of the upstairs restaurant. We opted for the upstairs restaurant where a beautifully decorated table awaited us on our arrival.
Our meal was lovely – chicken parmesan as an amuse-bouche, filled breads, warm seafood cocktail for starters (absolutely delicious) followed by red snapper with a mustard crust and medium-rare beef fillet in a mustard gravy. For dessert, we shared a hot chocolate soufflé with vanilla ice-cream. All of the dishes came in big portions and were excellent.
Staff were all absolutely lovely. Nothing appeared to be too much trouble and they went out of their way to allow us to pay our bill in both Euro and rupees. Pierre himself came over at the end of the night to make sure we had enjoyed our evening and wish us good night. We were really impressed with the quality of the food and the friendliness and professionalism of the staff and would gladly have a meal at la Gigolette again!
On an aside, we really liked the look of L’Archipel. While we were very happy at La Reserve, the property looked lovely, peaceful and well-kept. All the chalets appeared to have lovely views and the hotel’s beach was beautiful. Definitely worth considering for a stay.More