Gastronomy

The gastronomy, in Le Mans

The gastronomy of Le Mans is one of the great pleasures of a visit to Le Mans, starring the famous rillettes of Le Mans. The Le Mans audio-guided tour stops here to evoke these typically Sarthe flavours, from the melting rillettes to the rillauds, from the farm chicken to the Sarthe tomme, a savoury culinary heritage deeply rooted in regional tradition.

The rillettes and the Sarthe flavours

While you continue your visit, let us tell you about another typically Le Mans pleasure: its gastronomy. For here, we know how to delight the taste buds. We begin of course with the essential of the essentials, the rillettes of Le Mans: this famous shredded pork, simmered for hours, literally melts in the mouth, and is savoured generously spread on still-warm bread to release all its aromas. Another savoury speciality, the famous rillauds, pieces of confit pork belly, often served as an aperitif. And if you are looking for a more substantial dish, do not miss the farm chicken roasted in the Le Mans way or the recipes based on game, well rooted in the Sarthe tradition and the richness of the surrounding forests. On the cheese side, the Sarthe is not left behind: the most typical is the Sarthe tomme, a soft and creamy cow's cheese, sometimes enriched with garlic or herbs. For the gourmands, the region also offers savoury sweets, from shortbread to the pommes tapées of the Maine. All these products are tasted at the market, in the halls or the good tables of the city, and accompany marvellously a wine of the nearby Loire Valley. To taste the cuisine of Le Mans is to prolong the discovery of the heritage by that of the terroir. An art of living and Sarthe flavours, the gastronomy is a fine stop of the discovery of Le Mans.

What to taste

Here you discover the richness of the gastronomy of Le Mans, starring the famous rillettes of Le Mans, this melting shredded pork to spread; you also taste the rillauds, the farm chicken in the Le Mans way, the game recipes and the Sarthe tomme, a soft and creamy cheese, so many flavours rooted in the Sarthe tradition. The gastronomy is an art of living of Le Mans. It is a fine stop, to be savoured.

Practical information

The gastronomy of Le Mans is tasted everywhere in Le Mans, from the markets and the halls to the restaurants of old Le Mans, reachable on foot. The hours of the markets and the tables vary; midday remains a good moment to taste the specialities. It is best to favour local producers and the good addresses of the historic centre.

What is the gastronomic speciality of Le Mans?

They are above all the famous rillettes of Le Mans, a shredded pork simmered for hours, melting in the mouth and to spread on warm bread; the gastronomy of Le Mans also counts the rillauds, the farm chicken in the Le Mans way, the game recipes and the Sarthe tomme, a soft and creamy cow's cheese, so many flavours rooted in the tradition of the Sarthe.

Where to taste the gastronomy in Le Mans?

Everywhere in Le Mans, from the markets and the halls to the restaurants of old Le Mans and the historic centre, in France.