©
Frédéric Durantet
Discoveries
A BIT OF HISTORY
Maison Bocuse's one hundredth anniversary
©
Frédéric Durantet
L’Auberge du Pont de Collonges, better known as ‘le restaurant Bocuse’, is celebrating its one undredth anniversary in 2024. it will be an opportunity to rediscover an internationally renowned gourmet institution, which saw the birth and death of a french culinary legend: Paul Bocuse.
The history of this restaurant is intertwined with that of Paul Bocuse. It began in 1924, when his grandparents took over the Hôtel du Pont de Collonges. His father, Georges Bocuse, became the establishment’s official owner in 1937. Paul was born there on the 11th of February 1926. He learned his trade with La Mère Brazier, in Lyon, and then Lucas Carton, in Paris, and Fernand Point, in Vienne. He returned to Collonges in 1954 and took up the reins of the restaurant in 1957. He served up a flavoursome cuisine based on the terroir, combining simplicity and refinement. In 1958, he earned his first star in the Michelin Guide, then the prestigious title
‘Meilleur Ouvrier de France’ (MOF) in 1961, followed by a second star in 1962. His third star, awarded in 1965, remained with him until he passed away in 2018.
As a witness to an important chapter in the history of French gastronomy, the restaurant has seen the birth of several dishes that went on to become iconic, such as the Élysée truffles soup, created in 1975 for French President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, the Red mullet with potato scales, and the “Mère Fillioux” Bresse chicken cooked in a bladder.
The restaurant’s façade, painted red and green by Société Roche & Cie in 1986, and then decorated with frescoes and gilding by the Lyonnais CitéCréation in 1993, was restored in 2019, during renovation works of the restaurant’s lounges. Today, Monsieur Paul’s daughter, Françoise Bernachon, is the guar dian of the family’s “temple of gastronomy”, alongside her brother, Jérôme Bocuse, and the trio Gilles Reinhardt, Olivier Couvin and Benoit Charvet, respectively chefs and pastry chef.
Local knowledge
To celebrate its one hundredth anniversary, Maison Bocuse has some fantastic surprises up its sleeve for the people of Lyon, including an open doors day
for the Pentecost. It will be an opportunity for all to taste a slice of living history.
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