Market cuisine, local and seasonal, with British accents… Les Rosbifs Pau, a one-of-a-kind restaurant

Les Rosbifs is an unusual restaurant in Pau, in Béarn. Perfect marriage between cheerful, colorful , seasonal market cuisine that gives pride of place to small producers, and accents of flavors and " so British " dishes. Run by a couple of English expatriates, with a quality French chef in the kitchen, you will not taste the delights they concoct for their customers anywhere else. Be curious and leave your prejudices at the door, here British cuisine is sublimated by the best local products: meat , fish and vegetables staged in dishes that honor the Union Jack (the flag of the United Kingdom). Come and meet Ben and Naomi as well as Chef David, in this restaurant with such a warm and exotic atmosphere!

Photos of the article © Les Rosbifs Pau

A “made in England” restaurant to help you discover the best of British gastronomic culture

At Les Rosbifs Pau, we immediately wanted to get ahead of the jokes, with the name of a British cuisine restaurant that sounds the death knell for prejudice! You will eat delicious dishes, cooked with love, prepared with passion and patience.

Naomi and Ben Rigden know France well, having traveled there for several years with the firm intention of settling there one day. When Brexit arrives, it is a situation that gives them the necessary impetus to pack up and come and settle in France. They are in search of the sun (like many Britons will you say?) and are keen to find a city on a human scale that combines the pleasures of the ocean and the mountains. Pau welcomes them and chance encounters invite them to meet David Casadebaig, Emeritus Chef who has several years and establishments of experience behind him. The three friends rack their brains to find a concept that echoes everyone's desires and above all that appeals to gourmet customers. Then was born the idea of a restaurant with refined cuisine, where David could use the best local products of Béarn, accommodating them in English version . It is then a tedious, but exciting, work of composition of a map that begins. It is necessary to choose dishes and find the basic products in French version, without distorting the authentic taste of the recipes of the United Kingdom.

Make British cuisine with local products

Ben and David are very strict about one thing, even uncompromising: the most local possible source of ingredients. No question of working with imported products, they want to limit the carbon footprint of Rosbifs (that is to say its environmental impact ) in favor of a cuisine that follows the rhythm of the seasons and highlights local know-how.

For example, to make an English-style Fish'n Chips, we use, on the other side of the Channel, fish that we cannot find here in a " fresh " version. Ben then decides to turn to the Hake caught with a line by the small fishermen of Saint-Jean-de-Luz (in the Basque Country nearby).

For the sausages that make up the Sunday Brunch English Breackfast, Ben has found a British butcher in the area, who can make him the perfect Cumberland sausages: the traditional sausages with meat added with Rusk (a kind of breadcrumbs), him giving it its inimitable and characteristic taste.

A British meal being incomplete without a real English- style Real Ale, it was with great luck that Ben met the Shakespeare craft brewery, which brews English style in Navarrenx!

For the bread, they are supplied by a local baker (the famous Maison Grangé ), for the wine, it is with the Cave de Jurançon, in short, you will have understood it, they are committed to working with the artisans of the mouth. local!

Eat British specialties in Pau

Customers who pass through the door of Rosbifs do so out of curiosity, or because they know exactly what they are going to find there and are delighted! The cosmopolitan clientele is surprised and touched by the attention, the care given to the dishes to make them so good and surprising.

On Sunday, a delicious Brunch concocted by Naomi or Ben will delight the taste buds of late risers, with sausages, fried eggs, smoked bacon, baked beans, black pudding, mushrooms and pan-fried tomatoes.

The midday meal offers you a simple but perfectly mastered menu: choice of starter, main course and dessert for quite reasonable prices. Let yourself be surprised by a 'Scotch Egg' (British speciality, a hard-boiled egg surrounded by a sausage meat breadcrumb) accompanied by Celery Remoulade, or a Roast Pork Shoulder and its “Crackling” (pork belly crispy fries) accompanied by Roasted Apple Fruit… For dessert, we particularly like the 'Summer Pudding' with summer fruits or the Eton Mess (a mixture of strawberries, meringue, cream….).

On weekdays, for Lunch (lunch), gourmet sandwiches are available to take away or eat in. The English are fond of various and varied sandwiches, with fresh cheese and salmon, BLT (bacon lettuce tomato), sweet and savory combinations… It's a great part of British culinary culture that is presented to you! Also try the scones with whipped cream and homemade jam (which are not on the menu except for Sunday brunch, but we put you in the confidence: they are available all week, just ask!), various cakes like brownie or flapjack!

To sit down at Les Rosbifs is to let yourself be transported on a culinary journey to appreciate the taste buds wide open. Let yourself be advised by Ben and Naomi, don't hesitate to ask questions to find out more about these dishes that are out of the ordinary . Fans of the " British way of life" will not be disappointed and novices, pleasantly surprised! See you soon at Les Rosbifs Pau!

Did you like our article? Find others on the Blog du Guide du Béarn. Find us on the Facebook page of Guide Béarn Pyrénées and also on Instagram @guidebearnpyrenees

Back to "Food Lovers"