A CULINARY RETREAT IN
toulouse, France
WITH
Chef, Farmer, Cookbook AUTHOR
June 5-11, 2027
Abra Berens joins us for the first time in the heart of Southwest France
7 Days, 6 nights
June 5-11, 2027
From $5,600 USD
Abra is a Michigan-based chef, author, and former farmer whose three cookbooks — Ruffage, Grist, and Pulp — have made her one of the most beloved and practical voices in food writing today. Her week with us is built around the kind of cooking that actually changes how you move through a kitchen: how to season, how to shop a market, how to work with what's in front of you. Add natural wine tastings, a day in Toulouse, some of the best food you’ll ever eat from our Michelin-trained chef, karaoke, and a grill party that runs later than anyone planned, and you've got the idea.
Join us in Toulouse, France and cook with Abra Berens!
Abra Berens has spent her career tightening the connection between eaters and growers — and her teaching style reflects exactly that. She doesn't hand you a recipe and step back. She helps you understand why food works, so you leave with instincts, not just instructions. Her workshops this week move from foundational skills (seasoning, knife work, market shopping) to the more technical and deeply satisfying (breaking down a whole fish, making fresh pasta, building a grill party feast). Whether you've cooked every day of your life or you're still a little nervous about it, you'll be in good hands.
The setting for all of this is the 13th-century Château de Labusquière, nestled in a quiet corner of southwest France about 45 minutes west of Toulouse. Thirty-plus acres of grounds, a sun-drenched courtyard, a pool, wandering woods, and the resident peacock, Yopi, who has strong opinions about mealtimes.
Join us for a week of eating well, cooking better, natural wines and spending time with people who care about the same things you do.
Cooking with Abra
Abra's approach to teaching is the same as her approach to cooking: start with what's in front of you, understand why it works, and build from there. The Château de Labusquière kitchen is the kind of place that makes you want to roll up your sleeves — and that's exactly what you'll do. Each session moves from foundational to hands-on, and every skill you pick up builds on the last. You'll leave with techniques you'll actually use, and the confidence to improvise when you get home.
WORKSHOPS
Adventures in Seasoning — An opening session on emulsification and tasting through the making of mayo, vinaigrettes, tonnato, and rouille. You'll also work on knife skills to prep vegetables for a Grand Aïoli platter that becomes that evening's apéro spread.
How to Cook from Any Market — Starting at the Samatan market with Abra's framework for how to shop with confidence, then back at the château to cook from what you found. Market vegetables and grains become the sides for dinner that night, paired with proteins from the Rêverie kitchen.
Fresh Pasta, Fresh Fish — Breaking down a whole fish, learning seasoning techniques, and making fresh filled pasta from scratch. Lunch that day is what you made.
Recipes for Confidence — Abra's final workshop focuses on the skills that make home cooking feel genuinely good: breaking down chicken, building sauces, controlling heat on the grill. The grill party feast follows.
* To preserve the shared culinary experience we strive to create, we’re happy to accommodate vegetarians, pescatarians, and allergies. However, we are unable to tailor meals for additional dietary preferences or restrictions. If you have specific questions about your needs, feel free to reach out — we’re happy to chat!
Let’s eat!
Chef Paul Albert is your personal chef for the week. Paul trained in fine dining — he knows how to plate a dish so it looks like art — but that's not what drives him here. What drives him is feeding you exceptionally well. Fresh bread every morning (sourdough, brioche, focaccia, whatever calls to him that day). Homemade cheese. Cultured butter. Yogurt made from scratch. Three chef-prepared meals a day, all of it built around what's most beautiful at the market that week, served family-style down the center of a long table.
Every meal is paired with natural wines selected by Esmé, Rêverie's sommelier — chosen to complement the food and the region, and explained without a drop of pretension.
The kitchen door stays open all week. Wander in, ask questions, taste whatever's on the stove. Paul will hand you a spoon and probably tell you why he's toasting the spices before he grinds them. You might end up helping with dinner. It happens!
Welcome to Château de Labusquière, your home for the week. This enchanting 13th-century castle, thoughtfully renovated, has 15 rooms and 8 bathrooms — enough space to feel genuinely at ease, private when you want it, and together when you don't. It sits on a hilltop in Montadet, in the heart of Le Gers, 45 minutes outside the city of Toulouse with views of the French countryside that make it hard to believe this is real life. Thirty-plus acres of grounds are yours to wander: a swimming pool, a petanque court (French bocci) with a view, paths through the park and forest, and the resident peacock, Yopi, who considers himself part of the hosting team.
It's our Rêverie home away from home.
*Please note that changes to the itinerary may occur between now and your retreat start date.
Saturday // June 5, 2027
3:00 pm Airport pickup at Toulouse Blagnac (TLS)
3:30 pm Check in at Le Grand Balcon Hôtel, Toulouse city center
Evening Yours to explore. Dinner tonight is on you (we're happy to send recommendations!)
Sunday // June 6, 2027
7:30 am Breakfast at Le Grand Balcon Hôtel
11:00 am Vans depart for Château de Labusquière
11:45 am Arrival, settle into rooms, tour of the grounds
1:00 pm First lunch together
3:30 pm Workshop with Abra: Adventures in Seasoning
6:00 pm Apéro by the pool
7:00 pm Welcome dinner in the grand dining hall
MONDAY // June 7, 2027
8:00 am Breakfast
9:00 am Market visit 101 with Abra: how to confidently approach a market
9:30 am Depart for the market in Samatan
11:00 am Return to château
12:30 pm Lunch at the château
3:00 pm Workshop with Abra: How to Cook from Any Market
5:30 pm Guided natural wine tasting with Esmé
7:00 pm Dinner in the dining hall
tuesday // June 8, 2027
8:00 am Breakfast
10:00 am Fermentation 101 with Chef Paul Albert
12:30 pm Lunch at the château
2:30 pm Workshop with Abra: Hosting the Perfect Dinner Party + Breaking Down a Chicken
6:30 pm Rêverie grill party
wednesday // June 9, 2027
8:00 am Breakfast
10:00 am Free morning
12:30 pm Lunch at the château
2:30 pm Depart for Toulouse
3:30 pm Free time in the city: the Garonne, the markets, the plazas — all yours
6:00 pm Dinner at Restaurant Grave, Canal de Brienne
8:00 pm Return to château
THURSDAY // June 10, 2027
8:00 am Breakfast
9:30 am Workshop with Abra: Recipes for Confidence
12:30 pm Lunch at the château
3:00 pm Free time
6:00 pm Apéro toast to the week
7:00 pm Final dinner at the château
Friday // June 11, 2027
8:00 am Breakfast
9:00 am Vans depart for Toulouse Blagnac airport.
Bon voyage!
GET TO KNOW
Chef, Farmer, Cookbook Author
Abra Berens is a Michigan-based chef, author, and former farmer whose work is driven by a single, clear conviction: that cooking should tighten the connection between the people who grow food and the people who eat it. Her dinners at Granor Farm in Three Oaks, Michigan have twice made her a James Beard semifinalist for Outstanding Chef: Great Lakes. Her three cookbooks — Ruffage, Grist, and Pulp — form a practical, endlessly riff-able trilogy on vegetables, grains and legumes, and fruit, earning recognition from The New York Times, The New Yorker, and two Michigan Notable Book awards. In 2027, she and her husband Erik Hall are opening Everyday, a cooking school for home cooks rooted in ingredients, technique, and the stories of the producers behind them. Teaching, in other words, is not a sideline for Abra. It's the whole point.
Transfers to and from the Toulouse Blagnac airport (TLS)
One night stay at Le Grand Balcon Hôtel in Toulouse with breakfast included. Please note that dinner on your first night is not included — you can eat at the hotel restaurant, or we're happy to help you choose a place in the city!
Workshops with Abra Berens and all associated materials
Recipes galore!
Chef-prepared meals at the château for breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Wine tastings with our in-house sommelier
Additional cooking workshop with our in-house chef
All wine and beverages (unless you want to have your own after-hours party 😉)
Dinner out Grave in Toulouse
Private coach transportation while on retreat
All scheduled outings and events during the week
5 nights of château lodging, naturally
* To preserve the shared culinary experience we strive to create, we’re happy to accommodate vegetarians, pescatarians, and allergies. However, we are unable to tailor meals for additional dietary preferences or restrictions. If you have specific questions about your needs, feel free to reach out — we’re happy to chat!
Airplane
Several planes fly direct to Toulouse Blagnac airport (TLS) every day from Paris and other cities around Europe. We will arrange for an airport pickup on June 5th at 3:00 p.m. for a transfer to your hotel. If you arrive before or after the scheduled pickup, the airport is a short 20–25 minute drive from the city and you can easily catch a taxi to Le Grand Balcon Hôtel. On June 11th, our drivers will drop you off at the airport at 9:00 a.m.
If you choose to leave earlier than the scheduled departure, we would be happy to help you arrange a private driver for an additional fee. Cost of airfare to Toulouse Blagnac is not included. Please let us know if we can offer any support or guidance with your travel plans — we're happy to help!
*Cost of airfare to the Toulouse airport and cost of transport from the Toulouse airport to the Hotel INSERT NAME is not included in the cost of your reservation. If you need help with booking your trip, please contact kathleen@reverieforever.com
Car
If you're the road-trip type, drive down from Paris! Stop in the Dordogne for a foie gras tartine and make a detour through Rocamadour for the view. You can keep the car for the week or drop it at the airport on arrival day and we'll come get you.
Travel Reservation
If you would like guidance with booking your travel to Toulouse, our in-house travel guru, Kathleen, is here to help. You can reach her directly at kathleen@reverieforever.com
We are here to help make this part easy and smooth.
If you would like to extend your stay in France, we are delighted to partner with The French Travel, a locally owned and operated trip designer based in Paris. They are true experts who will help you perfectly plan your before and/or after Rêverie experience. Check them out for more info!
Train
Trains are a great option for independent travelers. If you arrive at Toulouse Matabiau train station, you'll need a quick taxi to the Toulouse Blagnac airport (about 20 minutes) to meet our scheduled pickup.
Questions?
Explore our FAQs or get in touch!