La Toile de Lin

Rating: 12.5
Author: Gault&Millau

4 Rue Carnot, 76560 Doudeville, France

12.5/20
Gourmet Restaurant

BOOK

10 PHOTOS

Chef: Benoît Chicot
Cooking: French | Gastronomic | Local
Services: Disabled access | Terrace

Budget (€)

Indicative price per person (excl. drinks)

35 to 62

Gault&Millau's review 2026

It is indeed the new generation that can save our inns and even revitalize regions we thought were lost. Far from the cities and their bowls of ramen, a young chef can thrive and make a life in the countryside. As Benoît Chicot demonstrates in the welcoming dining room—with its meticulously set tables, linen tablecloths, and thick Norman-style beams—in the heart of this farming town renowned as the capital of the blue-flowered plant. What the young chef offers here, assisted by his wife Margaux in the dining room, is as much about merit as it is about pleasure. Through a €49 menu—generous both in the number of courses and the energy poured into them—he showcases a budding talent that has already captivated the entire Pays de Caux: a sea bream carpaccio as an amuse-bouche, a truly indulgent creation featuring peas, sauce and pod oil, flambéed mackerel, low-temperature hake with a champagne beurre blanc emulsion, seasoned with cucumber, flaxseeds, and onions (a distant yet successful evocation of herring with potatoes in oil), the excellent poultry cooked with corn and honey, served with a well-crafted poultry jus, followed by an equally thoughtful dessert: white chocolate ganache with madeleine cookies, plums, and muscovado sugar. Areas for improvement include a stronger connection to the local terroir with clearly identified local products, and a wine cellar that leaves much to be desired—currently limited in selection and lacking in expertise. Nevertheless, La Toile de Lin is a hidden gem to be cherished, having earned its first Michelin star—provided the chef stays true to this distinctive personal style, further refining his approach to focus on authentic flavor.