Kinoa (Montpellier)

It was an awful grey and wet day in Montpeyroux so we decided to take a drive and do some food shopping in Montpellier. Since the weather was so bad, we decided to eat at Compagnie des Comptoirs because one of our friends has never eaten there and they have parking. When we got there, to our surprise they were closed. So, we decided to eat in a Japanese restaurant that has had a lot of good reviews in the old city. Walking through the rain; again to our horror, the restaurant was closed until 5 Jan. So, we decided to walk through the rain to Les Bains. However; half way there, we noticed that Kinoa was open. Yippeeee!!! We decided not to walk any further in the rain.


The restaurant was so full, that we had to wait about 15 minutes (which was not too bad), we were just happy to hear that our table would be ready soon because some customers were paying their bill. Kinoa is well known and is considered a very good restaurant. As well as having one of the best quality and price ratio. In short; a very very inexpensive set lunch menu. At 17.50 euros for an appetizer, main course and a glass of wine or half bottle of water (coffee not included; it was 2.50 euros). A fantastic deal. No wonder the place was packed.


The first appetizer was rouget. Two large pieces of cold rouget on top of a fresh salad and accompanied with onion doux and soft carrots. The rouget had a nice and tender meat. A simple dish but very tasty.


The second appetizer was home-made fois gras accompanied with lentils. I really liked the idea of the fois gras with lentils instead of sweet fruit. The fois gras was rich with flavour and a soft & creamy texture.


The first main course was entrecote. The entrecote came out cooked as asked; saignant. The meat was tender and had good flavour. The dish had the typical side dishes to accompany the entrecote; baked potato, broccili & carrots. However, the side dish of fried rice noodle was a waste and did not add anything to the dish. It was bland and a bit oily. The sauce for the entrecote was simple but very nice.


The second main course was civet de cerf. This was a wonderful dish. A great comfort dish with such horrible weather. The cerf was so tender and rich with flavour. The potato gratin was rich and creamy. The sauce from the cerf added another dimention to the gratin. We definately would like to have this dish again.


We always forget about Kinoa when we come to Montpellier to eat. After this lunch; we will not forget this very nice and inexpensive restaurant again.

The service was very efficient from a young man full of confidence and energy.

Please click here for directions to Kinoa