On the road with the Pure France photographers in Prayssas, Lot-et-Garonne

Eating french cuisine in friendly local restaurants - It’s a tough job but someone has to do it

It’s the photographs which make our site so distinctive. Taking them occupies much of our time in spring and autumn.

Photographs taken in winter look...well...wintery. In summer we like to think that our houses will be full of visitors who came here to relax, rather than be supermodels in our photo shoot.

So, September and April to June are spent on the road. Capturing the charm of a Pure France home can take several hours, sometimes an entire day for a large château.

Today Lee and I found ourselves in Prayssas, a hilltop village in Lot-et-Garonne, south of the Dordogne. It’s a medieval bastide, a circular fortified settlement designed to withstand attack by invading armies.

The square in the centre of Prayssas

During that marathon international match known as the 100 Years’ War, this part of France changed hands several times. The French and the English took more than a century to settle the matter. France won after extra time with a little help from the Scots. Family squabbles are always the worst.

Peace finally broke out in 1453. These days the anglais and the other britanniques come with more peaceful intent.

It's not easy being a Pure France photographer, forced to tour picturesque French countryside in the sunshine. Then there's eating french cuisine in local restaurants - It’s a tough job but someone has to do it.

Lee and I are up to this challenge. Today’s restaurant, La Bastide Saint Louis, hides inside the village’s outer wall. Sylivie and David Chougny offer wholesome local fare from a dining room which features 12th Century exposed stonework.

La Bastide Saint Louis features 12th Century exposed stonework

We could have eaten from a range of regional dishes or even pizzas, but we went for the fixed menu at €23.50. An excellent aiguille de canard in a foie gras sauce went the way of a salade de gésiers. Honour was then satisfied by a range of cheeses and crème brulé à la maison.

Summer's coming and the dining terrace is ready

We made a note to add this to our list of lunchtime stopovers. Sylvie and David haven't seen the last of us.

Sylvie et David Chougny, Restaurant La Bastide St Louis, place St Louis, 47360 Prayssas. Tel 05 53 95 05 47

Related links :

• http://www.purefrance.com/47037/self-catering-holiday-home.php