Lyon?

What are your favorite restaurants, wine bars, wine shops, and general sightseeing things to do in Lyon?

Was just there and dinner at Les Apothicaires was awesome. Le Supreme excellent too. For a traditional bouchon, Le Bouchon des Filles was great, orders of magnitude better than the abysmal Daniel & Denise.

There’s a cool little wine shop called Recoltant-Manipulant with a nice selection of grower Champagne and interesting selections from Beaujolais and the rest of Burgundy. It’s run by a woman named Myriam that is obviously into bubbles. She’s very nice and knowledgeable, and knows most of the growers personally.

If you’re looking for a snack, right around the corner from RM is a tiny little empanada place called Toké (on Louis Vitet). They call them chaussons, but they’re empanadas. Absolutely awesome and as good as anything I’ve had in Argentina and as good as 5411’s empanadas in Chicago. Their chorizo empanadas have a surprising amount of spice for France, and it was great. I probably had a half dozen different ones during my visit.

La Sommeliere - fantastic intimate dinner (12 seats). Modern French food, set menu, served with a Japanese aesthetic. Wine pairings were simple wines but paired beautifully with the food. Michelin 1* but not particularly pricey.

Burgundy Lounge - good food an unbelievable wine list with very inexpensive pricing.

Antic Wines - Go to the basement level. Some great finds.

Bouchon Thomas - great traditional Bouchon

Museum of the Resistance/Deportation is a fantastic and sobering visit.

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Good thread here:

I wrote this up for a fellow Berserker after our recent trip to Lyon, so I figured I’d share it here too:

In general, stuff that’s unobtainium here is only slightly less unobtainium there. That said, you can still find some REALLY good deals at retail, and some RIDICULOUS deals at restaurants - like getting a bottle of 2011 DRC Echezeaux for 500 Euros (at Takao Takano), or Armand Rousseau Gevrey Chambertin Clos St. Jacques for around 320 euros (at Burgundy Lounge and La Mere Brazier). And it’s France, so you don’t really tip - you might leave 20 euros for the table at a Michelin-starred place, and 5-10 euros at a lesser spot. Most of the really hard to get stuff ends up being easily available and cheaper at restaurants which is like opposite world.

Restaurants worth a look:

  1. Burgundy Lounge (which in the last month has changed to Burgundy by Mathieu?). We didn’t eat here but if we had one more day we would have just because of the ridiculous wine list. If you love Burgundy, this is worth a look.
  2. Takao Takano - this meal was sublime (2-star French-Japanese cuisine), and where I got my bottle of Echezeaux. The dinner tasting menu is about 130 euros and worth every penny (lunch looks to be a steal at 45 euros). We preferred it to the Fat Duck in London which we ate at two days prior. Can’t recommend this place enough.
  3. Paul Bocuse - this is a little outside of town so you’ll need to hail a cab. It’s also like eating a museum, where you get to see what fine dining was like in the 50s/60s/70s. Everything is over the top and your stomach will explode by the end of the meal.
  4. La Mere Brazier - we didn’t eat here but the reviews are stellar and the wine list is ridiculous.
  5. Daniel et Denise - this is a more modern take on a Lyonnaise Bouchon, which is a good thing, because as much as we loved Cafe des Federations and Bouchon des Filles, both will leave you uncomfortably full. We haven’t actually been here either, but it’s at the top of our list for our next trip back. Doing a Bouchon and taking in the local fare is a must (unless you go to Paul Bocuse in which case you’ll have already had a rarefied version of the same thing). Quenelle de brochet is a ridiculously delicious dish, and one that you should seek out before leaving town.

Wine shops:

  1. Antic. Upstairs has a bunch of Rhone, downstairs has magnums and a ton of well-aged Burgundy. It’s like being in a candy shop.
  2. Maison Malleval. I bought all my wine here just by happenstance. This is where I picked up the Perret Condrieu for 51 euros (about $56 - it goes for close to $100 here). I also picked up a Domaine Chave Saint Joseph for about the same money (as it also goes for about $100 here now). They have so much stuff that just isn’t available in the states. Bring a wine check.
  3. Guyot. This is worth a look for the wines in the back (like a bunch of DRC which they want normal insane retail prices for - no sweetheart restaurant deals here).
  4. Muraato. It’s a combination wine bar and wine shop. Good selection of Rhone and Burgundy.
  5. Nicolas. It’s like the French version of Total Wine, but way smaller scale and better curated. Few rares, but solid wines.
  6. Ô vins d’anges in Croix-Rousse. Meh selection of wine, but they have a decent selection of Cantillon if you like lambics.

Food (general):
Les Halles Paul Bocuse is a GREAT market with lots of restaurants and shops. Definitely worth a visit, but be sure to go at lunchtime, since there aren’t any restaurants open mid-afternoon. Pick up cheese, bread, pate en croute, and a bottle of wine and make a picnic (also makes a great train meal if you’re taking the train out of town).
Charcuterie and cheese are next next level there. Eat all you can stomach. Pretty much any nice restaurant should have a cheese course at the end.
If you like oysters, they’re a bit different there than they are here, and winter is the season for them. There’s a couple good seafood bars in Les Halles. Go during lunch, grab a dozen oysters, and wash it down with a glass or two of muscadet.
Cantaloupe is super special there (extra sweet and extra perfumed). I bought one from a farmer’s market on the banks of the river and I couldn’t stop eating it.
The “Fooding” app is a lifesaver if you’re looking for good food. It’s more like Eater than Yelp. The Michelin Guide Europe app is worth the $15, especially if you’re going town to town. If you’re like me (can afford to throw down on a meal or two but not all of them) you probably want to focus on the Bib Gourmands, which are excellent food at excellent value (under 40 euros for a two course meal with a drink I believe). Michelin Plate is good but not 1-star good (or 1-star priced) so those are also usually worth looking at.

First of all Geoff, thank you for the detailed post. I copied the information into a document to save for our next trip to Lyon. Lyon is one of my favorite large cities in the world.

As for a meal, my wife and I enjoy https://jeremygalvanrestaurant.com/ although it has been a few years since we were in Lyon. The restaurant is in the old city.

Need a place to stay for a Saturday night, any suggestions?

Grand HĂ´tel-Dieu or Villa Florentine.

Thanks but too pricey…somewhere in the $100-200 range

Okko Pont Lafayette