Cartel Cycles & Café

A rolling bike gathers no moss… unless it crosses the finish line at the Leyreloups’ café, where Alice’s specialty coffee snags the yellow jersey, tied for first-place with the high-end bicycles peddled by her husband Julien. For a little fuel, there are carefully-sourced beans from all over, starting with those from the micro-roaster Clinton Hill in Clermont-Ferrand, or those from L’Arbuste in Caen, Mokxa in Lyon, or Gardelli in Italy… plus a few from Swedish roasters, or even American roasters like Elevator in Portland. They’re all served in house or to go for bikers on a quick pitstop or leisurely wanderers: classic doppios and mocaccinos, cool cold brew infused for 24 hours, espresso tonics, homemade lavender syrup lattes, plus plenty of options for lovers of slower brewing methods (Aeropress, Chemex, V60). What’s more, there’s a peleton of homemade, lactose-free desserts, like the crunchy miniature amaretti, the warm brookie or the lemon and poppy seed cake, which you can enjoy while whizzing through the countryside on your bike or taking it easy in one of the armchairs at the back of the shop. // Angela Dolu

THE HIDDEN GEM: The cascara, which is dried coffee cherry pulp, served as an iced infusion with a splash of maple syrup (€5).