Colmar – A Bit More Exploring and Dinner at La Fer Rouge

After a nice lunch back at the apartment we took a even nicer nap. After waking, the Missus made us some espresso and we headed out to the terrace and enjoy our favorite view in Colmar, the Pont de Rue de Turenne. Selfie time was in full swing.

It seemed like everyone needed a photo here.

Everyone……..

And I really don't blame them at all….it was quite entertaining.

And we just loved watching all of this from our discrete perch.

We headed back out….there's a term I picked up in Paris; Flâneur or flânerie, to basically stroll or wander aimlessly, experiencing the urban surroundings, which the Missus (the female term is Flâneuse) and I always try to do, it's a very important part of our trips, the time to take in our surroundings and appreciate, in our most limited way our destination. And our last evening in Colmar was no different.

We wandered through the tourist trail…….

Where there were still interesting things to see; like this 2 Euro Store.

Which has quite a history.

Actually, being a tourist in France is not a bad thing at all; I read an article where author and reporter Anthony Peregrine was quoted something I've heard several times; “Of the 60 per cent of French people who go away on holiday, some 80 per cent stay within their own country". So, even the French, like to travel to…..France.

We did a circle around the area….

Ending up around Rue des Tetes, where we had been earlier in the day.

Where we got some gifts and confections.

And, ahem….did some "window shopping"…..yea, that's right; window shopping. I was actually tempted to purchase (I almost typed "grab") a bottle of L'alsacienne Biere. But we had a bottle of liquid refreshment back at the apartment and I'm not quite sure what the meaning of culotte was in this context. Though based on the poster I could guess…..

By now it was getting close to dinner time. A few months before; I'd gotten a recommendation to try out the Baeckeoffe at a place called La Fer Rouge which was located almost across from the Koïfhus (the Customs House) and conveniently located on the way back to the apartment.

The restaurant is located in a lovely half-timbered structure and is quite charming. It's also a pretty busy restaurant, though we got there right before opening and got a table with no problem.

And there was indeed Baeckeoffe on the menu. The service was professional and courteous.

The Missus had a nice glass of wine and in anticipation of the Baeckeoffe being quite substantial, ordered as She did the night before. She just loved Choucroute and could not get enough of it.

She deemed this version as the second best She had; with Le Petit Venise still number one.

She also enjoyed my salad…..much welcomed with all the rather heavy food we'd been consuming. Crisp veggies, nice refreshing dressing.

As for my Baeckeoffe. Well, this one pot stew of mixed meat; here cooked in red wine was…..well, incinerated.

Those potatoes were burnt, bitter, with a texture like cardboard. The bottom was full of crusted burnt meat. The layer in the middle; was rather tasty, fairly rich and hearty. I had thought of returning this; but the place was just plain slammed….so, we ate what we could and cut our losses.

Le Fer Rouge
52 Grand rue
68000, Colmar, France

Plus, earlier we had decided to open up one of the bottles of Champagne we had purchased at Champagne Brugnon in Rilly La Montagne and enjoyed it in the warm comfort of the apartment.

If we're ever back; I need to do more in-depth research on places to eat.

The next morning we packed and headed out.

It was a nice crisp November morning and we enjoyed the walk to Gare de Colmar.

I really like the look of the train station; which opened in 1907.

And there's a really neat window scene in the train station that was done by Jean le Gac. It depicts a painter (of course) dashing from a train to rescue two damsels in distress. Not quite sure how this ties into Colmar and it looks kind of strange for a train station, but I liked it.

As for Colmar; well, we really enjoy Alsace and Colmar is a nice base for exploring the region. We loved the vibe and really enjoyed the apartment. I really think we'll be back.

But for now…….we were off to Lyon!

Thanks for stopping by!