La Salamandre

La Salamandre is a restaurant and vinothèque founded by four friends from Saint-Aignan who wanted to celebrate their region’s history, architecture and culinary traditions. It stands in the medieval centre of Saint-Aignan between the Renaissance château and the collégiale, offering a refined Loire Valley setting and a pause for local living. The venue presents an inventive, engaged and flavour-driven approach to local produce and offers takeaway menus. The site references a Bib Gourmand on related pages and positions La Salamandre as both a dining destination and a wine-tasting spot in an evocative historic setting. Housed in a fully restored tuffeau stone house in the medieval town, the dining rooms feature refined décor typical of the Loire with tuffeau walls, a ground-floor display where bottles are presented like artworks, a small troglodytic cellar and a terrace for outdoor enjoyment. The overall vibe is enchanting, regional and convivial, combining historic architecture with a polished, contemporary presentation. The kitchen offers contemporary regional French cuisine built around seasonal, local and artisanal ingredients; dishes are inventive and flavour-forward, reflecting the chef’s international experience while valuing local producers. The wine list emphasizes Loire appellations and is curated to pair with the chef’s menu. Chef Jeroen Steentjes moved to Loir-et-Cher in 2012 with his wife Marike after 22 years working in starred hotels and restaurants in the Netherlands, Germany, France and internationally, and he leads the kitchen with a modern, carefully crafted style. Specialities include seasonal regional tasting and à la carte dishes, Loire wine pairings from a ground-floor vinothèque with about a hundred references designed to accompany the chef’s dishes and to showcase partner vignerons from across France, Caviar de Sologne, charcuterie and cheese platters, oysters and chef’s takeaway 2- and 3-course menus.