The inn of the Mère Poulard is themost famous restaurant of the Mont-Saint-Michel. He owes his fame to his recipe foromelets cooked over a wood fire.
It’s more than a simple meal, it’s an experience where your eyes will be as solicited as your stomach!
Back in photos on this moment, with all the practical information to sit at the table of the Mère Poulard.
This review is completely independent, we ate anonymously and paid our bill in full.
Why eat at the restaurant L’auberge de la mère Poulard
Is L’auberge de la mère Poulard worth it? Our review
To say that the auberge de la mère Poulard arouses passions is an understatement. Some people swear by these beautiful drooling omelettes known all over the world, while others consider the price-quality ratio disproportionate.
For us, there are 3 reasons that pushed us to have lunch there:
- Installed since 1888 on the Mont, the Mère Poulard inn is an obligatory step of a visit of the Mont-Saint-Michel, it is an integral part of the heritage. It would be like visiting Paris without passing the Eiffel Tower!
- The wood-fired cooking brings an authentic atmosphere to the meal. As you pass through the entrance you will see the flames licking the pans and illuminating the egg cups that contain the precious beaten eggs, putting you firmly in appetite.
- The tradition of welcoming pilgrims to Mont-Saint-Michel is perfectly embodied in this simple, healthy and nourishing meal, which we love to rediscover on this occasion. Especially since the omelet is sublimated by the good eggs of Normandy and a recipe kept secret since its creation.
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What you will eat there
You will have understood it, the emblematic dish of the inn of the Poulard mother, it is the omelette.
Even if the recipe is a well-kept secret, it seems that the mystery lies mainly in the quality of the raw material (butter and eggs from Normandy), magnified by the cooking process.
The eggs come from the neighboring farm of the Delaunay family (located in Pontorson, 10 km from Mont-Saint-Michel) since the inn opened in 1888! Today, it is the 5th generation that delivers the 300,000 eggs used annually to make Mère Poulard’s omelettes three times a week.
The eggs are beaten for a long time in a large copper bowl with a long whisk to incorporate as much air as possible. At the same time, a generous amount of salted butter from Normandy is placed in a pan with a long handle of more than 1m. This pan is placed, with the help of its handle, in the heart of the hearth of the fireplace. As soon as the butter sizzles, throw in the beaten eggs and put it back on the fire. The result is an evenly cooked omelet that isairy and particularly tasty.
The omelettes are served with bacon, salmon, scallops or just vegetables.
The rest of the menu offers more traditional dishes with some specialties from Normandy, for those who are intolerant to eggs.
A MAGICAL EXPERIENCE AT Mont-Saint-Michel
Step 1: Plan and get there
Step 2: Decide on your program
Step 3: decide where to sleep
What you will drink
Over the years, La Mère Poulard has become a true gastronomic brand and is also available in a cider (brut, sweet or rosé) and in a classic or sparkling apple juice (to Claire’s great delight!).
The juices are created by Celliers de l’Odet, a family-owned cider house in Brittany that grows 35 hectares of apple trees not far from Quimper. Who said that Brittany and Normandy were irreconcilable?
The atmosphere of the restaurant
Built by Victor and Annette Poulard in 1888, the building that still houses the restaurant, but also the piano bar and the 27-room hotel is located just at the entrance of Mont-Saint-Michel, at the beginning of the famous Grande Rue.
At the time, it distinguished itself from the competition by offering individual tables for lunch or dinner, a first on Mont-Saint-Michel! Even if the building has not changed its appearance, it has been enriched with more than 3000 objects that testify to its almost 150 years of existence (posters, photos, dedications…).
As in any very touristy place, don’t expect a quiet romantic meal, but the interest is elsewhere!
The incredible story of the authentic Mère Poulard
Mother Poulard is Anne Boutiaut, a maid who arrived at Mont-Saint-Michel in 1872, in the luggage of her employer, Edouard Corroyer, chief architect of the Monuments Historiques who had just taken over the direction of the restoration of the Abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel.
At the age of 21, she met her future husband, Victor Poulard, the son of the baker of the Mont, whom she married on January 14, 1873.
At first, they were the managers of the“Hostellerie de la Tête d’Or“, a small hotel that welcomed pilgrims. In 1888, they bought theHôtel du Lion d’Or and demolished it, replacing it with a much more modern hotel that they named“A l’omelette renommée de la mère Poulard“. The legend was born.
If you want to pay tribute to him, you can visit his grave in the small cemetery of Mont-Saint-Michel.
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Why is L’auberge de la mère Poulard famous? The omelette
Since 1888, the inn has been visited by the great and the good of the world, from the King of England, Edward VII, to the President of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, not to mention the greatest European and American artists: Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Lauren Bacall, Yves Montand and Woody Allen.
In addition to the simple pleasure of a good omelette, these illustrious visitors came for the family welcome that was reserved for them in all circumstances. This simplicity had as much to do with human contact as with business sense, as the staff could be drastically reduced.
The Parisian and international press will do the rest to establish this local notoriety.
Bought in 1986 by the enterprising Mayor of Mont-Saint-Michel, Eric Vannier, Mère Poulard is now a a real tourist and gastronomic groupwhich has about twenty establishments in Mont-Saint-Michel, a cookie factory whose products are distributed in 70 countries, but also restaurants and cafés opened in Asia in 2012.
Practical information – L’auberge de la mère Poulard, restaurant in Mont-Saint-Michel
Type of restaurant:
Unusual restaurant
Schedules
Every day from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm and from 6:30 pm to 10 pm.
No reservation possible. We advise you to arrive early, especially for the lunch service, to hope to get a table.
Where is the Inn of the Poulard Mother
- Driving time from Rouen: 2h40
- Driving time from Evreux: 3h
- Driving time from Caen: 1h20
- Driving time from Alençon: 2h10
- Driving time from Cherbourg: 1h50
OUR ADVICE FOR RENTING A CAR IN Normandy
- Compare prices on our preferred platform: DiscoverCars – one of the best rated sites.
- Choose a car that is comfortable enough (distances can be long) but compact (some parking lots and villages are narrow).
- Think of thecomplete insurance (some roads are tortuous and narrow).
- There is a lot of demand, book it early.
How to get there
To get to Mont-Saint-Michel from Paris, we advise you to take a TGV to Rennes (1h40 with 17 round trips per day), then to rent a car (count a good hour of driving).
If you want to avoid the car at all costs, you can go to thePontorson train station, located 10km from Mont-Saint-Michel and count 4 hours by train from Paris.
Parking
Of course it is not possible to reach the auberge de la mère Poulard by car, as on the whole of the Mont, you will have to leave your car on one of the parking lots before the access to the bay. We explain you all the secrets of the Mont-Saint-Michel parking lots in this article.
The menus
The restaurant offers starter/main course, main course/dessert and starter/main course/dessert options.
Is the auberge de la mère Poulard family friendly?
Although your child may be tempted by a good omelet, there is no dedicated children’s menu and the price may be a deterrent for many families.
The bill
This is where the problem lies, the myth of Mère Poulard has no price, but it does have a cost: the omelette costs a minimum of 32€ and the starter/main course/dessert formula costs 49€.
WHERE TO STAY AT Mont-Saint-Michel
Option 1:
Choose one of the 7 hotels on the mountain, within the city limits – see our article
- The historic Auberge Saint-Pierre Hotel – see prices, photos and availability
Option 2:
Or sleep in the part called La Caserne which is between the parking lots and the footbridge to Mont-Saint-Michel.
- Mercure 4-starhotel – see prices, photos and availability
Option 3:
And if you are looking for luxury, check out our article dedicated to luxury hotels near Mont-Saint-Michel.
- The charming guest house Clos de Gilles – see prices, photos and availability
Option 4:
The Normandy countryside is very green and inspiring. At the bend in the forest or in the fields, pretty villages with beautiful buildings transport you to another world, or even another era.
- Hotel Ermitage at 5min – see prices, pictures and availability
- Château de Boucéel at 30min – see prices, pictures and availability
