Showcasing vegetables

Long before all things green and vegetarian became fashionable, as far back as 1983, Michel Bras "cultivated" his customers with this strange menu, on which, sacrilegiously for Aubrac, there was no beef, just the fruits of nature. Clearly too audacious, this gastronomic bravado was unable to counteract the more carnivorous desires of the times. Sébastien's script enhances the natural treasures produced in the garden at Lagardelle, where every day, in the freshness of the morning air, shoots, herbs, vegetables, roots or flowers are picked. He invites us to taste the cèbe de Lézignan (allium cepa Linné, a sweet onion from the Languedoc region), finely chopped served on a rustic bread base offset by an unctuous cream, flavoured with wild rapeseed oil, some kohlrabi, lightly cooked, dressed with milk curds. Szechuan peppercorns, cultivated in Aveyron, will enliven fresh radishes and broad beans from the market. Fish and shellfish sometimes make inroads onto this menu, as part of the vegetal theme. Even the Bras signature dessert, originally chocolate flavoured, has been reinterpreted as an asparagus biscuit tiède coulant, tarragon sorbet, punctuated with a touch of almond.