Portrait of a chef

Benoît David

For him, cooking is a sentimental affair. By taking over his father’s stoves, Benoît David is continuing the tradition of a solid and family gastronomy, accompanied by his brother in the dining room in this restaurant near Rouen, in La Londe.

The Hermitage

Benoît David

“When I was 5 years old, I used to go downstairs to have breakfast amid the noise of pots and pans. The kitchen was my favorite room,” smiles the chef, who grew up to the rhythm of the family restaurant, set in a green hectare at the Maison Brulée crossroads in La Londe.

After ahotel school and an apprenticeship, Benoît David left to learn his trade in a Parisian four-star restaurant, then at the Belgian embassy and at the Manoir d’Hastings in Ouistreham. Returning to give his father a hand, he never left.

“It was the meeting of two culinary generations. I continue to cultivate this blend of tradition and modernity.”

Norman products

The terroir in its plates

Sole meunière, scallops or sweetbreads come in a variety of flavors, with a few hints of spice, while grilled meats are prepared over the fireplace’s wood fire. The chef loves fish.

“The one from Dieppe, he points out. If we want to continue to see fishing boats on the Normandy coast, we must support the industry and pass on the riches of the short circuit.

He regularly visits the orchards of his market gardener and does not hide his pleasure in front of Normandy cream, yellow in summer, white in winter. For dessert, the unavoidable apple dumplings and Norman entremets are high on the list.

“We like to search as a team and offer our finds to the guests!” he emphasizes.

The restaurant, with its art deco atmosphere, benefits from a new expansion, which allows for comfortable gatherings, and an outdoor room amidst the trees. Enough to spend a pleasant moment with family or lovers.

Practical information

L’Hermitage
Carrefour de la Maison Brûlée
Exit #24
76500 La Londe
02 35 18 01 60
www.restaurant-lhermitage.com
Schedules
Monday through Tuesday from 9am to 2pm
Thursday through Saturday from 9am to 2pm and from 7pm to 21:30
On Sundays from 9am to 18:30pm

Prices
Menus between 23€ and 54€

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