When you make the effort to reach Belle-Ile-en-Mer, you deserve a
'complete' hotel. La Désiderade is just such an establishment and its
owners, Monsieur and Madame Rebour, are constantly looking at ways to improve their hospitality.
Given that there's already a spa, a heated pool and bikes for hire, they
could be forgiven for resting on their laurels. But one innovation
that seems to be particularly appreciated is the copious breakfast/brunch; served
daily until a very civilised 11 am, it features a generous array of goodies including
home-smoked salmon.
Understandably seafood dominates the menus, as the emphasis is on
anything that can be freshly sourced on the island. Pacôme Epron is
the talented young chef and, apart from the occasional wobble, his
cuisine gets good reviews. There are two restaurants, one (La Forge)
is usually reserved for hotel guests on half-board.
Bedrooms are decked out with nautical tongue-and-grove and grouped as a series of typically Breton cottages set in the pretty garden. The aim is to present the ensemble as a little hamlet of gîtes such as you would find elsewhere on Belle-Ile. Hence the epithet Hotel de Charme seems to be entirely appropriate for La Désiderade.