A bouchon () is a type of restaurant found in
Lyon
Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
,
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, that serves traditional
Lyonnaise cuisine, such as sausages, coq-au-vin, "salade lyonnaise"
duck pâté or roast pork. Compared to other forms of French cooking such as ''
nouvelle cuisine'', the dishes are quite hearty. There are approximately twenty officially certified traditional bouchons, but a larger number of establishments describe themselves using the term.
Typically, the emphasis in a bouchon is not on ''
haute cuisine
''Haute cuisine'' (; ) or ''grande cuisine'' is a style of cooking characterised by meticulous preparation, elaborate presentation, and the use of high quality ingredients. Typically prepared by highly skilled gourmet chefs, haute cuisine dish ...
'' but, rather, a convivial atmosphere and a personal relationship with the owner.
History
The tradition of bouchons came from small inns visited by
silk workers passing through Lyon in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
According to the dictionary ''
Le Petit Robert'', this name derives from the 16th century expression for a bunch of twisted straw. A representation of such bundles began to appear on signs to designate the restaurants and, by
metonymy
Metonymy () is a figure of speech in which a concept is referred to by the name of something associated with that thing or concept. For example, the word " suit" may refer to a person from groups commonly wearing business attire, such as sales ...
, the restaurants themselves became known as bouchons. The more common use of "bouchons" as a stopper or cork at the mouth of a bottle, and its derivatives, have the same etymology.
Today
Since 1997,
Pierre Grison and his organization, ''L'Association de défense des bouchons lyonnais'' (The Association for the Preservation of Lyonnais Bouchons), bestow annual certifications to restaurants as "authentic" bouchons. These restaurants receive the title ''Les Authentiques Bouchons Lyonnais'' and are identified with a sticker showing the
marionette Gnafron, a Lyonnais symbol of the pleasures of dining, with a glass of wine in one hand and a napkin bearing the Lyon crest in the other.
[Cuisine des Gones]
(French) Retrieved 13 May 2010.
The following list, subject to some fluctuation as the certification is bestowed annually, contains most of the certified bouchons: ''Abel'', ''Brunet'', ''Café des deux places'', ''Café des fédérations'', ''Chabert et fils'', ''Daniel et Denise'', ''Chez Georges le petit bouchon'', ''Les gones'', ''Hugon'', ''Le Jura'', ''Chez Marcelle'', ''Le Mercière'', ''La mère Jean'', ''Le mitonné'', ''Le Morgon'', ''Le musée'', ''Chez Paul'', ''Les Trois Maries'', ''A ma vigne'', and ''Le Vivarais''.
[
While many bouchons are now oriented strongly towards the tourist market, with increased prices and less traditional fare as a result, a typical meal in a real bouchon costs around €12-15 .
]
Cuisine
Typical items in the bouchon repertoire include:
;Soup: Tripe soup, pumpkin soup
;Salads and cold appetizers: Chicken liver salad, pork head cheese, ''groins d'âne'' salad (literally, "donkey snout" salad),moulinhuile
(French) Retrieved 13 May 2010. marinated
herrings, ''salade Lyonnaise'' (
lettuce
Lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'') is an annual plant of the family Asteraceae mostly grown as a leaf vegetable. The leaves are most often used raw in Green salad, green salads, although lettuce is also seen in other kinds of food, such as sandwiche ...
with
bacon
Bacon is a type of Curing (food preservation), salt-cured pork made from various cuts of meat, cuts, typically the pork belly, belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish (particularly in breakfasts), used as a central in ...
,
croutons,
mustard dressing, and a
poached egg)
;Hot appetizers: ''gateau de volaille'' (chicken liver cake), ''
boudin noir'' (blood sausage, usually served with warm apples)
;Offal:
Andouillette (
pork
Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig animal husbandry, husbandry dating back to 8000–9000 BCE.
Pork is eaten both freshly cooke ...
offal sausage), assorted
offal
Offal (), also called variety meats, pluck or organ meats, is the internal organ (anatomy), organs of a butchered animal. Offal may also refer to the by-products of Milling (grinding), milled grains, such as corn or wheat.
Some cultures strong ...
gratin,
tablier de sapeur
;Fish: Stingray,
quenelles (ground fish dumplings), grilled fillets
;Meat:
Coq au vin,
pot-au-feu
(, ; ) is a French cuisine, French dish of slowly boiled meat and vegetables, usually served as two courses: first the broth (''bouillon'') and then the meat (''bouilli'') and vegetables. The dish is familiar throughout France and has many r ...
(
pot roast), chicken thighs stuffed with
morels
;Vegetables:
Cardoon ''à la moelle'' (in bone marrow), ''
barboton'', ''pailasson de Lyon''
;Cheese: ''
Saint-Marcellin'', ''
Saint-Félicien'', ''
Rigotte de Condrieu''
;Desserts: ''tarte praline'' (
praline tart),
lemon meringue pie, caramelized apples, ''
bugnes de Lyon'' (miniature
beignets)
See also
*
Les Toques Blanches Lyonnaises
References
Bibliography
*
{{French cuisine
Entertainment in Lyon
Restaurants in Lyon
Restaurants by type