L’Amaryllis is the restaurant of chef Cedric Burtin in the village of Saint-Rémy, near Chalon-sur-Saône in Burgundy, France. It is housed in an old watermill, le Moulin de Martorey.

In the dining room the old cogwheels are still there, which makes for a very nice ambiance. We opted for the chef’s ‘surprise’ 8- course menu (105 euros), which was not as surprising because it contained mostly the same dishes as the 5-course menu for 75 euros. The wine list only has French wines, and of course mostly from Burgundy with an impressive selection of Côte d’Or wines.

The first amuse bouche: parmesan tartlet with pesto.

The second amuse bouche was very nice: a very creamy cream of peas with herring.

The third and final amuse bouche: raw sea bream.

The first dish: green asparagus with calamari and a creamy sauce, sprinkled with parmigiano. The calamari was very tender and was very nicely seasoned. 8/10

Next came the chef’s signature dish: foie gras with a warm balsamic emulsion. This was great, as the dish had great balance with a very good pairing between the sweetness and the acidity of the balsamic with the foie. 9/10

Crunchy langoustine with pork ‘poitrine’ confit, citrus, and langoustine jus. Another very good dish. The langoustine was very crispy and worked very well with the pork and citrus. The jus had great depth of flavor with a touch of citrus. 9/10

John Dory with carrot confit in peanut oil, toasted pecans, and beurre blanc. Another great dish. The John Dory was perfectly cooked, tender and juicy. The beurre blanc was perfect. The sweet tender carrot was amazing with the toasted pecans. 9/10 (I would have scored 10/10 if the skin of the fish had been crispy.)

Charolais beef fillet, injected with lardo, with onion and blueberry vinegar jus. The beef was very tender. It didn’t really need the lardo, but it was nice all the same. The onion and jus also very good. 9/10

The cheese cart did not have a very wide selection (there are many pieces of the same cheese on it), but the cheeses were perfecly ripe and served at the right temperature. The light in the cheese cart was a nice touch. 8/10

The first dessert did not only look beautiful, but it had also great taste. It was chocolate shaped as the cogwheels of le Moulin de Martorey combined with passion fruit. 9/10

I’ve had a fake apple for dessert before, but this “Granny Smith apple” was even better because it was not only made of sugar but had actual green apple flavor. Inside was a very nice mousse and there was some crumble as well. 9/10

The friandises were nice, too.

The food of chef Burtin is very good. Technically everything is pefect and it is beautifully presented. Everything works. Although he has only one Michelin star, this is as good as many two star places we’ve eaten at. 9/10 for the food.

The service was very good, 8.5/10 for the service. Not much English is spoken, but they are very friendly and attentive.

This is very good value for money and I’m curious to see whether they will get a second star.