Accidental, fortuitous, or providential? We sometimes ask ourselves how we end up at certain places that seem better than what we had initially picked out.
Being in the mood for a nice sit down breakfast before starting our Nimes Roman Colosseum – Tower Magne tour, we scouted around for a nice place to sit down and eat. We first walked into a cute cafe name Dulce, but discovered they only served pastries. They sent us to Les Fées Café and although they also looked nice, they didn’t have breakfast either. The staff at Les Fées recommended Mogador. Unfortunately by that time, they had stopped serving breakfast, so we ended up at Café Courtois across the court.
Keep in mind, all three places we did not go to seemed nice, but Café Courtois ended up being exactly what we were looking for!
The place
Café Courtois gets its name from the owners, Marie Manuelle Courtois. She is one of a long line of family members who have owned the cafe since around 1850. The name Courtois translates to courtesy in English, and Marie definitely lived up to her name. Salon de Thé translates as Tea Room.
Located in a small square in Nimes, France about 150 meters (approximately 500 feet) from the colosseum it’s centrally located. We parked in an underground garage on the other side of the colosseum. It was an easy 5 minute walk. It took a little longer, only due to our previously mentioned search.
We were seated by the window. The view of the court was fun and allowed us to people watch, something we love.
Inside is quaint with a few seats in the bakery sales area. The bakery has quite a selection. Like any good bakery, you’ll need to get there early in the morning to ensure you get your favorite pastry.
There’s another room with seating for about 30. It has kind of a victorian style architecture that adds to the ambience.
Outside has a lot of seating, Had it been a little warmer, we probably would’ve preferred to sit outside in the square.
There was a fountain with pigeons bathing in the water and sitting on top.
The food
We started with hot chocolate and fresh squeezed orange juice (Dianne), along with a double espresso (Gary). The hot drinks came with a small pasterie!
From there we got a quiche (apparently it comes with fries and a salad), and a ham & cheese omelet. On this particular occassion, we decided to share. Wow, the quiche was extroardinary.
The food came out exactly the way it should and tasted as good as it looked. While we were only there for breakfast, they do serve lunch, dinner, and have ice cream.
The wrap up
Overall, this is a quiet, quaint place to have a nice meal. One of the most notable things we liked about the café was they weren’t in a rush to push us through. We were able to take our time eating and at the same time we watched the square. Maybe during the peak season it would be more hectic, but certainly not when we went. That made it quite a relaxing meal, which enabled us to enjoy our experience that much more!