Car auction in Brittany

If you live in Brittany and are looking for a second-hand car, this place might be of interest to you:

Bretagne Enchères Auto.

This auction takes place every Monday from 11am. They sell around 400 vehicles (cars, vans, trucks, etc) in a few hours!

Each car is sold within seconds, it is rather impressive.

To view the vehicles, you can visit this place every Saturday afternoon between 2 and 5.30pm.

You will find it North of Rennes along the N137.

Here is a map.

For more information, visit this web site here.

Pike quenelles

This is another dish that Raymond Blanc cooked on his program when he visited Lyon (France) and that I really fancied after watching it! Pike Quenelles!

I cheat and buy mine frozen. All I need to do is a tomato sauce to cover the quenelles and I top them up with grated cheese (I use my favorite French cheese: Comté). The traditional sauce is indeed a crayfish sauce. The proper name for them in French is “Quenelles de brochet sauce Nantua”.

The quenelles need to cook for about 40 – 45 min at 200 degrees in the oven. You know when they are done as they will double in size and look brown!

Serve them straight away as they will “deflate” like a soufflé ! (I took this photo too late, they were a lot bigger 2 minutes earlier!).

I grew up near Lyon and I always have Quenelles when I visit my parents. It is always on the men and they always taste better when my Mam cooks them!

Comptoir Electrique Français – a great place for electrical and electronic products

Comptoir Electrique Français sells any electrical and electronic products:

Cables, sockets, plugs, extension leads, circuit protection and consumer units, TV, satellite and communication, thermostats, etc.

Anything you need to rewire your French house!

I was looking for this place yesterday and got really annoyed because it is sign-posted for CDL. It is also called Comptoir des Lumières...

This place is in Taden, near Dinan in the Zone Artisanale des Alleux.

It is open to anyone, not just to professionals.

It shares the same building as Brossette – a place that sells plumbing products. If you get lost, ask for Brossette. Everyone know this shop in France unless you ask a tourist!

If you don’t find the electrical products that you are looking for in ‘normal’ DIY shops, you will certainly find them there.

This company has branches all over France.

Renting a car from St Malo port

If you arrive in St Malo by ferry as foot passenger, you will find several hire car companies there.

Some are based at the port and the other ones can deliver cars to the port or pick you up and take you to their agency nearby.

You are best to shop around for the best deal and pre-book a hire car online.

Here are the companies you can find in St Malo:

Based at the ferry terminal:

Avis:

Tel. 02 99 40 58 68

Europcar:

Tel.0825 358 358 (Premium phone number !)

Based in St Malo :

Hertz:

Tel. 0825 861 862 (premium phone number!)

Citer:

Tel. 02 23 18 00 00

Don’t forget your driving licence (permis de conduire)!

It doesn’t have to be a European licence. Your UK, Jersey, or Guernsey one will be fine.

A few words you might need when booking your French hire car:

Booster seat = réhausseur

Baby seat = siège auto

Automatic: automatique (pronounced the same!)

Second driver = deuxième conducteur