For nearly every one of the past thirty years I've driven to Southern Italy at least once a year. Sometimes the journey has begun by ferry directly to Normandy, sometimes it's been through the UK, but no matter which route I've taken, there's always been a drive through France. I'm a huge fan of French motorways; I like the way they're finished off with plantings and artwork, I like the fact that I can get to where I want to quickly and effortlessly and I admire the high standard of French driving. But that said, I still enjoy turning off the autoroutes and doing the nationales. I'm old enough to remember when there were no motorways in France - nationales was all there were - but today they're mostly less trafficked and no matter where you are there's always a bar, restaurant, bistro or routier to offer sustenance to the weary traveller.

I look forward to getting pangs of hunger in regional France. I love finding little roadside bistros with a blackboard outside offering a set lunch for just a few francs. You know before you walk inside that the food may not be elaborate and refined, the room may be simple, the service perfunctory, but you can be sure that the food will be genuine, well-prepared and good. There's a homely quality to French regional cuisine, in the sense that it relies on the freshness and flavour of the local produce for its success. Simple dishes made with genuine ingredients are a delight to my palate, possibly because of centuries of peasantry coursing through my veins.

Living as I do in the heartland of the Wicklow Hills, I find myself sometimes a little behind the curve. Reports of what's new, happening and kicking can take a while to reach me. But eventually the jungle drums brought me news of a restaurant in Greystones that serves French regional cooking at lunchtime, called 'Le Paysan' - or in English 'The Yokel'. From the outside 'Le Paysan' doesn't look very French, in fact it doesn't even look like a restaurant. What you need to know before you go is that the restaurant is above the delicatessen, because I didn't see any signs that a casual passer-by might notice. Go up the stairs after passing through the deli and you find yourself in two rooms that have been recently decorated with a view over Greystones main street. It's simply done; some oils on the walls adding splashes of colour and plain wooden tables with an assortment of wooden chairs surrounding them. I was both surprised and pleased to find a crisp, starched linen tablecloth.

My wife and I sat by a window watching the world unfurl beneath our gaze on the road below. We were promptly handed menus, and for a moment I thought I may have to do without wine - perish the thought - until I noticed it said on the menu 'ask for our whine list', which gave me a smile. A very simple list, just three reds and three whites, but there, among the whites, was a good Viognier varietal - Domaine de la Bastide - and at a reasonable £14.00, so I looked no further. We added a bottle of sparkling mineral water to the jug of water already on the table.

The menu, just as you'd expect, is straightforward. There's a breakfast section, which looked tempting, a snack section which had some good things in it, main courses and desserts. As it was lunchtime I didn't scrutinise the breakfast menu much, but the snack list had dishes that I thought might make a good starter for a full lunch. By the way, they also have a blackboard of specials, which had a duck liver pate and a quiche with spinach and goat cheese. I swear it's true, an American lady at a nearby table pointed to 'quiche' on the board and asked the Spanish waiter what a 'quicky' was. And I thought that was an old joke. Most of the snacks are under a fiver and the main courses under a tenner, so 'Le Paysan' won't make demands on your wallet.

To start we had a duck liver pate and a French onion soup - well I had to, didn't I - and then to follow a mushroom omelette for Susie and the beef Bourgignon for me. Sadly my first choice of lamb Navarin was finished. Brisk and courteous service had our starters with us quickly. Susie's duck liver pate came with a salad and my excellent soup with the same baguette that was on the table, a rye flour baguette - unusual and good.

We'd both chosen to have a green salad with our main courses, which was included in the price, and we were served with a flat of sliced potatoes in a creamy sauce as well. Both Susie's omelette and my beef were well made and nicely flavoured, bringing back memories of meals just like this in rural France. In short, with the viognier slipping down nicely, we had an excellent lunch. When we'd finished our main courses I left Susie briefly reading the newspaper - this is a non-smoking restaurant - and I went downstairs for a post-prandial smoke and an espresso. It was a mild and almost sunny day, so I sat at one of the two outside tables and imagined myself as a part of Greystones' café society. When I rejoined Susie I found that she'd ordered a chocolate marquise with two spoons, so I got to taste this rich and filling dessert.

It's worth knowing, if you're a local, that 'Le Paysan' will produce any of these dishes as a take away and while I was sipping my coffee I saw people availing of this very service. A good lunch, then, with a reasonable price tag, £42.05 including the wine.