What are the food specialities of Arras to taste?

Arras possesses a gourmand tradition that can be read in its charcuteries, its patisseries and its chocolate shops. From the andouillette to the hearts of Arras, by way of the chocolate rats and the brewing tradition of the Artois, the town cultivates specialities that tell its history and its terroir. These delicacies, inherited from an ancient know-how, are part of the Arras identity in the same way as its squares and its belfry. An overview of the food specialities of Arras, of their composition, their origin and the houses that perpetuate them, to discover the town also through taste.

The andouillette, gourmand emblem of Arras

The andouillette of Arras is doubtless the most famous of the specialities of the town, to the point of having become an emblem. This pork charcuterie, made traditionally of calf's ruffle, is a culinary institution present since the Middle Ages, a time when this way of cooking also served to preserve the meat. Its preparation demands long work: the matter is first softened by a cooking in water and milk, then chopped and seasoned with onions, parsley, salt, pepper and nutmeg, before being stuffed into a beef casing and cooked again, for a process that stretches over several hours. The result is an andouillette with a frank taste, appreciated gently reheated, coated with mustard and lightly grilled. Each year, the town celebrates its speciality during a dedicated festival, organised by the Guild of the Andouillette, which brings together enthusiasts and the curious around this product of the terroir. To prolong the discovery of this delicacy and of the festival devoted to it, the Arras andouillette festival offers an unmissable rendezvous of the end of summer. The andouillette of Arras thus embodies the link between the gourmand heritage and the festive life of the city, a product that brings together and that makes the pride of the people of Arras. This charcuterie, prepared according to a know-how passed on from generation to generation, testifies to the attachment of the town to its culinary traditions. Gourmand emblem of Arras, the andouillette tells a story of terroir and patience, that of a product anchored in the memory of the town.

The know-how of the Arras charcutier

Behind the andouillette hides a veritable artisanal know-how, that of the charcutiers who perpetuate the recipe. In Arras, the charcuterie À l'Andouillette d'Arras, founded in 1888, illustrates this transmission of a trade and a knack. The charcutier Hugues Becquart prepares there a renowned andouillette, by selecting a pork raised in a traditional way and fed notably on flaxseed, a guarantee of quality matter. The making, long and meticulous, reveals all the demand of the trade: one must soften, chop, season and stuff, respecting precise proportions and gestures, before a patient cooking that gives the andouillette its texture and its flavour. This know-how, inherited from a long tradition, makes each andouillette the fruit of artisanal work, far from any industrial production. The charcutiers of Arras thus maintain a living gastronomic heritage, by adapting their art to the taste of enthusiasts while respecting the foundations of the recipe. Each house has its own way of doing things, its seasonings and its secrets, so much so that the andouillette of Arras comes in as many versions as there are artisans. This diversity, far from weakening the speciality, makes its richness, each charcutier bringing his signature. The know-how of the Arras charcutier, made of patience and precision, is the guarantor of the quality and authenticity of the andouillette, a speciality that owes everything to the hand of the artisan.

The hearts of Arras, a speciality in three versions

The hearts of Arras form an original speciality, declined in three distinct versions that share the same heart shape. The oldest is the gingerbread heart, based on white honey, whose recipe was patented as early as 1821. The second version is a chocolate heart, appeared in the middle of the twentieth century, offered in dark or milk chocolate, garnished with candied orange peel, a speciality perpetuated notably by the Trogneux house. The third version is more surprising: it is a soft cheese with a washed rind, of the family of Maroilles, matured in former military buildings and offered in the shape of a heart, to be tasted on a board or as fritters. This same shape, the heart, thus unites three very different products, from sweet to savoury, all claiming the name of heart of Arras. This diversity makes all the originality of the speciality, which plays on a common symbol to bring together varied delicacies. The heart of Arras is thus less a single product than a family of specialities, reunited by a shape and by an attachment to the town. To offer a heart of Arras, whether of gingerbread, chocolate or cheese, is to offer a typically Arras souvenir, a symbol of sharing and conviviality. This speciality, in its three declensions, illustrates the creativity of the artisans of the town and their attachment to a gourmand emblem. The hearts of Arras, sweet or savoury, are thus a must of the gastronomic heritage of the city.

Gingerbread and the origin of the hearts

The gingerbread heart is the oldest of the hearts of Arras, and its history goes back to the beginning of the nineteenth century. Its recipe, based on white honey, was patented in 1821 by an Arras house, and the speciality is perpetuated today under a registered trademark, produced notably by a patisserie established on the Place des Héros. This gingerbread heart, sometimes garnished with candied fruits, perpetuates a tradition of ancient delicacy in the region. The origin of the very shape of the heart is the object of a tradition that links it to the medieval history of the town: according to this tradition, the shape would go back to the arms of an Arras family of the twelfth century, the Crespin family, and would have been popularised by the gingerbread makers as early as the fourteenth century. This explanation, passed on for a long time, anchors the speciality in the distant past of the city, even if the precise history of its origins remains difficult to establish with certainty. Whatever the case, the gingerbread heart testifies to an ancient know-how and an attachment of the town to its traditional delicacies. Its making, which mixes honey and spices, perpetuates recipes inherited from a long history of regional confectionery. This heart, at once symbol and delicacy, embodies the link between heritage and taste, between the history of the town and its sweet tradition. To discover the gingerbread heart is thus to taste a piece of the gourmand history of Arras.

The rats of Arras, a chocolate delicacy

The rats of Arras are a chocolate delicacy that plays with one of the symbols of the town. The rat, indeed, has become over time an Arras emblem, and the chocolatiers of the town have made of it a speciality in the shape of a little chocolate rat. The association of the rat and Arras is explained, according to a popular tradition, by a play on pronunciation: the final « s » of Arras not being pronounced, the name of the town would have given birth to the expression « à rats » (to rats), whence the rat as a mischievous symbol. This explanation, passed on for a long time, is more a play on words than learned etymology, but it has durably associated the rat with the town. The chocolatiers of Arras have seized upon this symbol to create a delicacy full of humour, appreciated by inhabitants and visitors alike. One finds these treats at the chocolatiers of the town and, among the gourmand stalls, on the Arras markets: to spot these rendezvous, the markets of Arras and their times allow one to know where and when to unearth the local specialities. The chocolate rat, like the heart, illustrates this way that the artisans of Arras have of transforming a symbol of the town into a delicacy. These chocolate specialities, at once tasty and full of meaning, are part of the Arras gourmand heritage. To offer or taste a rat of Arras is to taste a delicacy that tells, with mischief, a little of the history and identity of the town.

The brewing tradition of the Artois

Beyond charcuterie and confectionery, Arras belongs to the great brewing tradition of the north of France. The Artois, like the whole of the Hauts-de-France, is a land of beer, where the making of beer is ancient and deeply anchored in the regional culture. This tradition, inherited from a long history, has given birth to beers typical of the North, of which the bière de garde is one of the symbols. The climate and the agricultural productions of the region, notably barley and hops, favoured the development of brewing, which has accompanied the life of the inhabitants for centuries. Today, this tradition experiences a renewal, carried by breweries that perpetuate the regional know-how and offer artisanal beers. In Arras and its surroundings, beer is thus part of the gourmand heritage, tasted in cafés, breweries and during festive events. It readily accompanies the local specialities, in a region where conviviality also passes through the sharing of a beer. This brewing tradition, at once ancient and living, takes part in the gastronomic identity of the Artois. To discover the food specialities of Arras is also to take an interest in this beer culture, inseparable from the life of the North. Beer, like the andouillette or the hearts, is part of these products that tell the terroir and the habits of the region, a heritage to be tasted with moderation but with pleasure.

Where to taste the Arras specialities

To taste the food specialities of Arras, the town offers numerous occasions, from charcuteries and chocolate shops to restaurants and breweries. The artisans, charcutiers, patissiers and chocolatiers, are the first places where to discover the andouillette, the hearts and the rats of Arras, in shops that perpetuate the local know-how. The markets, for their part, allow one to unearth these products of the terroir among the stalls, in a convivial atmosphere. The restaurants of the town often put the local specialities in the spotlight, offering the andouillette and the regional products on their menus. To choose a table according to the desire of the moment, where to eat in Arras according to the occasions helps to find the suitable address, from the festive meal to the quick lunch. The breweries and cafés finally offer the occasion to taste the regional beer, to accompany the specialities or for a moment of relaxation. To taste the Arras specialities is thus to enjoy a varied offer, which goes from the purchase at the artisan to the meal at the restaurant, by way of the discovery on the markets. This diversity allows each one to taste the gourmand heritage of the town, according to their desires and their means. To take the time to taste these specialities is to discover Arras through taste, a savoury way to complete the visit of the town.

A gourmand heritage to pass on

The food specialities of Arras constitute a veritable heritage, inherited from the past and passed on from generation to generation. From the medieval andouillette to the hearts of Arras, by way of the chocolate rats and the beer of the Artois, these delicacies tell the history of the town and of its terroir. They testify to an artisanal know-how, maintained by the charcutiers, patissiers, chocolatiers and brewers who perpetuate the recipes and the gestures. This gourmand heritage, living and savoury, is part of the Arras identity, in the same way as the monuments and the squares of the town. To pass it on is to keep a tradition alive, by making it known to visitors and by sharing it with the new generations. The festivals and events devoted to the specialities, like the andouillette festival, contribute to this transmission, by celebrating the products and the artisans. To discover the specialities of Arras is thus to take part in the life of a heritage, by tasting products that carry within them the history and the soul of the city. These delicacies, far from being simple products, are the reflection of a culture and an attachment to a place. They invite one to discover Arras otherwise, through flavours, and to carry away a little of the town in a gourmand souvenir. The Arras gourmand heritage, rich and varied, deserves to be discovered, tasted and passed on, as an essential part of the identity of the town.