Just a little bit shellfish

We're just back from a wonderful Sunday lunch with our pals, down at the coast overlooking the Etang de Thau, on the edge of the Mediterranean.

La Ferme Marine is like a huge canteen which seats a couple of hundred people. Although there are alternatives, most people opt for the serve-yourself buffet heaped with shellfish straight from the adjacent sea.

It's a jolly place where people pile the huitres, moules, bulots, crevettes, escargots de mer, violets, palourdes and tourteaux as high as they can, then return for more. The conversation is lively and the Picpoul de Pinet chilled. Wonderful.