Restaurant selling huge quantities of mussels. Might look like a tourist trap but continues to attract locals in large numbers.
Moules frites cooked four or five different ways at sensible prices. Service brisk and pretty friendly towards visitors.
Located on a main shopping street opposite Galeries Lafeyette.

34 rue de Bethune Lille
+33 3 20 57 12 46
Google map: tinyurl.com/3xoszxn

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Fantastic Lebanese veggie / vegan menu at Flandres de Liban (website even has English menu) in Wazemmes.

More centrally, Aux Indes, do a great veggie set lunch and dinner - but you have to ask for it.

And don't miss trying a 'palette' of four (small) different beers at Les Trois Brasseurs close to the old Lille Station (Lille Flandres, rather than the Eurostar station).

www.flandresliban.net/
Aux Indes is at 38, Rue Thiers, Lille

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The OUI has trendy décor, but they forgot the essential thing: the quality of the food.

The wine list was large but most of the wines were not available. I had to ask for four different wines to find one, but the price went up from 30 euros to 60 euros. We asked the waitress for a reduction, and she answered that her boss would think about it.

The food was also bad and the dishes arrived one by one so that the six of us ate almost cold food despite the restaurant being far from full.

When the bill arrived we realised we had received no reduction. The bill was 250 euros for six people (40 euros per person for a main dish and a dessert).

Then the manager started insulting us and told us not to behave like poor people! He raised his voice and pushed us towards the door.

So if you want to be insulted and to eat bad food, go to the OUI. If not, be on your way, there are many other good restaurants in Lille.

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Wonderful, undoubtedly one of the top Indian restaurants that Lille has to offer. Delicious food, friendly service, fabulously modern-yet-cosy decor... all amount to a lovely and memorable experience. Also a very trendy bar in the basement.

Address: 38, Rue Thiers - 59000 Lille
Telephone: 03 20 21 02 66

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The Sunday market is a must. Get off the Metro at Gambetta and go straight, you're there. Otherwise walk from the centre across Place de Republique down rue Gambetta and get more of the atmosphere. If you walk take a break at Le Stout for a coffee and cognac - it is the café on the corner with a bike suspended in the window. Then twenty yards later you are in the flower market and behind that the covered market. In the covered market there are plenty of treats.

A Polish stall which does the best smoked filet mignon in the world although a bit expensive at 27 euros per kilo. We call it 'baby' at home because it is so tender.
There is also a cheese stand that is good value and massive - so they always cut more than you want.
The other side of the covered is the open market. A mix of farmers' and bulk buy, but both are good value. Olives beside endives. The spice stands used to be good but they have doubled their prices recently. There is also haberdashery and second hand clothes and a fine selection of elephant-shaped underpants.

There is plenty to eat - banks of roast chicken, ribs, Chinese noodles and pies (try the cheese maroilles on a pie or traditionally dunked in coffee). All the cafés on the square are fine but I prefer those on the street on the side of the covered market as they are where all the stall holders go. In front of the church it is more trendy, very people-watching and people who have not been to bed.

There is a great family restaurant on the square but I'm not telling as they refuse to be in guidebooks. It serves a fixed menu of what is fresh and cheap. Fantastic veal liver, fish and chips (French style, no batter) and if the kidneys don't appeal there is a tender rump steak as standard. All this with a starter and a cheese plate or a dessert for 25 euros. Find it!

The market is on Sunday morning from 7am to about 2pm depending on the weather. If it isn't raining it is packed - the Lillois don't mind the cold, only the rain. France is very kid-friendly, but don't take a pushchair as all your kid will see are bums and you get stuck in pram jams.

Lots of other stuff to see in Lille: museums, medieval buildings, general Flemish architecture. A very under-rated place to visit.

Metro Gambetta
or walk through the town across Republique and down rue Gambetta

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Au Bout des Doigts restaurant in Lille’s old town is an unusual, modern French restaurant with a twist – every delicious morsel is bite-sized and eating with your hands is required.

You can enjoy fantastic, innovative French cooking in a cool modern setting. French cooking is delicious but sometimes it takes itself too seriously; Au Bout des Doigts is the perfect antidote. And since it's located in friendly Lille, it's trendy dining without attitude. Bon appetit!

Tél: +33(0)3 20 74 55 95
5, Rue Saint-Joseph - En face du palais de justice, avenue du Peuple Belge
59000 LILLE

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A l’Huitrière is a stunning fish restaurant, with a world of seaborne delights available. It's by no means cheap, but it is very special.

www.huitriere.fr/

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When looking for something to eat in Lille, you don't need to go further than Aux Moules. The mussels are simply to die for, and the art deco decor makes it a pleasant place to wile away an evening. Check out the photos of 1920s mussel catches on the walls.

www.auxmoules.com/

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Feeling peckish as you await departure for the journey home? Go to the bar opposite the fountain. - they do the most lovely, super-thin-base pizzas, among other delights. All washed down with a fine selection of beers!

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We had a great meal at the "la cave aux fioles" restaurant. However, we needed to book in advance - it is small and cosy, but popular.

www.lacaveauxfioles.com/

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Rather than endure the torture of the office Christmas lunch in one of London’s eateries, we took the Eurostar to Lille in the hope of finding a restaurant to pass a few pleasant hours partaking of good wine and food.

By chance, we stumbled on Le Barbue d’Anvers, and were not disappointed. Housed in a characterful sixteenth-century building just seconds from the Grand Place, the menu included an excellent selection of regional specialities (such as carbonade flamande and waterzoï).

An extensive and reasonably priced wine list was complemented by service that was attentive but not obtrusive.

1 bis, Rue Saint-Etienne
59000 LILLE
Tél: +33(0)3 20 55 11 68
Fax: +33(0)3 20 15 08 14

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