Viviers de Sion: buy fresh shellfish and crustaceans in Vendée

Do you know where to stock up on seafood and other delicacies from the ocean during your stay in Vendée? Prawns from Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie, oysters refined in clear, crabs, lobsters, scallops, spider crabs, langoustines… Succulent meals with family or friends in perspective, thanks to the Viviers de Sion! For more than 100 years, this family business, which is in its 4th generation of enthusiasts, has known how to combine quality with respect for the resources of the sea, by offering its gourmet customers products of the best quality, seasonal. and super fresh. Meeting with a company as traditional as it is modern.

Photos from the report © Les Viviers de Sion & Simon Bourcier

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The Vendée, its seafood and ocean specialties

The Vendée is THE destination where you can have fun and taste the products of the ocean. Fish lovers, but also shellfish lovers, you have come to the right place for a real iodine cure, all year round. Because, yes, there is a season for seafood products , as for vegetables and meat! Depending on the spawning season, which correlates with sea temperature and other environmental factors, one must bow to nature's rhythms for fresh and delicious shellfish. This is where the expertise of the Merceron family comes in handy. For 4 generations and more than a century of existence in the small seaside resort of Sion-sur-l'Océan in the heart of the town of Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez, this Vendée family has been able to perpetuate the precious resources of the ocean, to satisfy its customers.

Read our article on a nice walk along the sea, in Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez, a good idea to whet your appetite before your seafood meal.

It was in 1920 that the adventure began with Frédéric Berthomé, restaurateur, who, to ensure a sufficient supply without suffering the vagaries of fishing, created a first small fish tank in front of his establishment. Today, it is the Hôtel Frédéric, which still exists! Les Viviers de Sion has taken its letters of nobility, because we can say that this name is an institution and a guarantee of quality in the region! In 1955, to avoid watching like milk on the fire, his lobsters and langoustines which bicker at low tide, Frédéric had the first seawater basins built, the offshore fish tank! It is a success and since then the building is regularly modernized to accommodate and keep live animals (livestock = live).

Read our article on the prettiest seaside resorts in Vendée, something to prolong the holidays or plan your next stay in Vendée today.

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Buy fresh shellfish all year round in Vendée

The company has 3 places of practice:

Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez, where at the Viviers de Sion, individuals (locals, vacationers ), can find top quality shellfish and crustaceans, with regular traffic.
Les Sables d'Olonne, where the company's head office and wholesale premises are located. Vendée Crustacés is the branch of the company that gets its supplies from the Vendée auctions and then redistributes these marvels to other auctions outside the department (as far as Rungis in the Paris region), then especially to restaurants, fishmongers, etc.
In Talmont-Saint-Hilaire, the Merceron family has invested in oyster refining basins, to make delicious fines de claire with a subtle and fine taste, elegant, with a hint of hazelnut ... They are fleshy, generous and perfectly balanced. Also to be found at the Viviers de Sion, the shop!

Les Viviers de Sion gets its supplies from auctions (Les Sables, Noirmoutier, Saint-Gilles and Ile d'Yeu), but also from small-scale fishermen directly. For 1 century, you can imagine that they have been established and know the right people, to fill their stalls with top quality products, right? Buying directly from fishing boats also has the advantage of allowing very advantageous pricing. Finding cheap seafood in the Vendée is not always easy and this is one of the concerns of the Merceron family: to make these seafood products accessible, at the right price. For certain products, depending on the season (because you want lobster at Christmas and for the holidays, don't you?) you have to go and stock up in Scotland, where the colder sea allows you to have resources out of season in France. Carefully selected by Les Viviers de Sion, you can trust with your eyes closed.

Don't forget to place an order, a quick phone call to reserve what you need, because shellfish and crustaceans can leave very quickly in season!

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So these prawns, cooked or raw?

Shrimp, yes, but above all langoustines, lobsters, crabs, cakes, spider crabs… Products that you don't always master, when you live far from the ocean. To have fun during the holidays, without worrying about how to properly cook a shellfish, it is better to trust Les Viviers de Sion. For several years, they have developed with expertise the skill of cooking shellfish, to offer you the best, easy to eat without upsetting the kitchen of your gîte! Leave it to the professionals!

Les Viviers de Sion are open all year round, 6 days a week and every day in season. Consult the Viviers de Sion website (in fr) for more information, precise times and contacts for ordering! Here is the list of delicacies that you can discover on the stalls, in aquariums and ponds: