Le Manoir de la Régate sits on the Erdre in north Nantes, where Mathieu Pérou holds a Michelin star and green star for menus rooted in river and garden.
Tip: Closed Sunday and Monday but the house opens for lunch on public holidays; ask for the Erdre-facing windows.
L'Abélia seats its market-set menus in a 1900 mansion with a garden on Boulevard des Poilus in Nantes, dégustation dinners at unstarry prices.
Tip: The house closes for annual congés for about ten days in mid August; in fine weather ask for the garden terrace rather than the dining room.
Bateaux Nantais sails the Erdre out of the Gare fluviale in Nantes at 12:30, a two-and-a-half-hour lunch cruise past the river's châteaux and folies.
Tip: Boarding closes at 11:45 and the boat is back on the quay by 15:00; the spring and summer menus run from 3 April to 29 September.
The Bateaux Nantais dinner cruise leaves the Quai de la Motte Rouge in Nantes at 20:30 and works the Erdre and its châteaux for two and a half hours.
Tip: Boarding is at 19:45 and the boat returns at 23:00; weekday seats cost less than weekend ones on all three menu tiers.
Les Rendez-vous de l'Erdre lines the Nantes quays with free jazz stages and festival villages pouring Brasserie du Bouffay beer and Kerisac cider.
Tip: The villages sit at Pont Morand, Quai de Versailles, Quai Henri Barbusse and the Île de Versailles, and every stage is free.
Little Britain Café on Boulevard Auguste Peneau in Nantes serves a Sunday British brunch at €23, with unlimited coffee and a trio of puddings.
Order: The savoury plate of soft-boiled eggs, spinach on brioche and house beans
Tip: Service starts at 11:30 on Sunday and the tea comes from Un grain, Une Feuille; the room is small, so book several days out.