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Le Grand Balcon Hotel, Toulouse

Sarah Lamey visits The Pink City to find the perfectly located Le Grand Balcon Hotel

The Credentials:

A two-and-a-half-hour flight including a swish over the Pyrenees will drop you in Toulouse, also known as La Ville en Rose (The Pink City) due to its pink brick architecture. It sits on the bank of the river Garonne and is the capital of Europe’s aerospace industry.

The ‘40s film Au Grand Balcon was set in the hotel – note the cloud wallpaper and the film noir framed stills. It is located perfectly within the Capitole de Toulouse square which, during our December stay, was home to a German Christmas market selling handcrafted gifts. The food stalls stole the show, offering fresh potato dauphinoise laced with cheese sauce, and crepes oozing Nutella.

Dine:

The hotel breakfast offered a good hot and cold buffet with a mix of pastries, sausages and eggs and fruit smoothies. To our disbelief there was also vitamins and ‘happy pills’ (yes, that is what they were called but no, I didn’t try them) provided with the fresh orange juice.

We found some complete gems of local restaurants. Firstly, we tried Le Fanal, a bit of a jaunt outside of the city centre but well worth the trip for the fish soup topped with croutons smothered in rouille sauce (meaning ‘rust’ sauce after its colour as it is heady with saffron and garlic), plus their emmenthal cheese was nothing but blissful.  We also discovered Le Peilharote, which is a flea market concept restaurant; sat among antique clocks and china cups we ate the finest confit duck and carrot puree. I tried the traditional dish of pig’s feet at Le Genty Magre but enjoyed their fluffy and crisp waffles a bit more. My personal highlight was sitting in Le Florida café in the Capitole Square eating French onion soup engulfed in Art Noveau splendour. Sadly, we didn’t get to try the local dish of cassoulet but with the option of confit duck and foie gras, who wants sausages and beans?

Sleep:

We stayed in a classic room that was warm and modern with muted lavender and slate tones. Unfortunately the views were disappointing as we looked directly into another building. We were welcomed with rose and pistachio pastries; the room boasted a Nespresso machine and a large flat screen TV situated perfectly at the foot of the bed so we could indulge in some French teleshopping. The bathroom was generously stocked with obligatory L’Occitane products.

Who Goes There?

Le Grand Balcon was filled with French people, either stopping for cocktails after Christmas shopping or larger family groups having a weekend break. There were also some Japanese tourists, staying for the German markets. Toulouse is the place to be if you’re a foodie or wine aficionado.

Out & About:

On our first of our three-day trip we took a tour around the vineyards and tried the wines of the local region of Fronton at Chateau Bellevue La Foret, an impressively vast vineyard with a lake, blanketed by toffee-coloured autumn leaves and a candle-lit and enchanting underground cellar. We then visited the Maison des Vins de Fronton which was a cosier affair specialising in organic wines and revelling in being family-run with dogs and children gallivanting in the vineyards. Culture vultures should check out The Augustins Museum, a monastery-cum-museum with vast paintings and bizarre gargoyle statues, plus The Jacobins Convent bejewelled with stained glass. The traditional flower of Toulouse is the violet and not to be missed is Le Maison de la violette, a boat museum with everything from violet mustard to violet perfume. Foodies should head down to Victor-Hugo Marketplace to pick up local cheese or a chicken to pluck.

The Best Thing:

It has to be the food. I wasn’t once disappointed from the croque-monsieur I inhaled while walking around the local gardens to the foie gras pasta I ate in the ornate Le Florida brasserie. And who can complain when it’s all glugged down with great local wine…

The Worst Thing:

It is a student town so prepare yourself for drunken teenagers on the streets at night shouting expletives at each other.

The Details:

Rooms start at €220 a night, including breakfast. Le Grand Balcon Hotel, 8–10 Rue Romiguières 31000 Toulouse, France; www.grandbalconhotel.com; +33 (0)534 254 409

To book a tour of the vineyards or city contact Toulouse Tourist Office, www.uk.toulouse-tourisme.com; +33 (0)540 131 531