Lyon

Lyon was a quick overnight stop for us on our way west, a way to break up the journey from Switzerland’s Valais canton to the Burgundy wine region. Often compared to Paris, Lyon is quite a large city tucked into the northern portion of France’s Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes province. It’s France’s third-largest city and second-largest urban area, famous for its food and beautiful Renaissance Vieux Lyon district (English: Old Lyon). Amazing to think it had been almost two months since we’d left France behind in Nice before heading east into Italy… Lyon came across as a very hip and young-feeling city – no doubt due to the three large universities that call Lyon home – the cafes, brasseries and restaurants were a constant hive of activity during our visit. The center of the city is split by the Rhône and Saône Rivers, making for plenty of riverside spots for afternoon libations watching the world go by.

Lyon is recognized for its cuisine, and in particular the bouchons that litter the alleyways and courtyards of the city center. They were quite literally everywhere. Their prevalence in Vieux Lyon, in particular, was astonishing, where it seemed like every second storefront was a quaint eatery tucked away into a picturesque Renaissance building. The bouchons served up some incredibly rich food, focusing on plates such as handmade sausages, salade lyonnaise, duck pâté, various veal dishes and smoked fish. Compared to other forms of French cooking, the dishes were heavily oriented around the use of fats and meat.

Faced with a little choice overload, we rolled the dice and dined at L’acteur Bouchon Lyonnais in the second arrondissement, a charming six table, hole-in-the wall restaurant where we were greeted and waited on by the friendly chef. The three salads we sampled for starters were all delectable. Forced to pick a favorite, I think I’d probably lean towards the salade lyonnaise, while Lilia favored the lentil and duck prosciutto offering topped with a poached egg, and Lisa steered toward the greens topped with smoked herring. Max wasn’t too plussed with anything on offer, but I’ll give him kudos for trying at least a few bites of everything! The mains were so incredibly rich that all of us had trouble clearing our plates. I accidentally ordered sautéed veal liver instead of the veal chops I thought were on the menu – chalk that up to language difficulties – but the food was super interesting all the same.

We also spent the morning exploring Vieux Lyon and La Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière on foot. Mass was in session when we visited the basilica so no photos of the interior, but it was a very commanding structure with a stunningly ornate interior. Lyon’s old town was a real treat with its beautiful Renaissance buildings and pedestrian-only cobblestone streets. The kids enjoyed hunting down the traboules – secret alleyways – hiding behind nondescript doors littered through the old town, and the food on offer was divine. We enjoyed sampling the wares of some of the patisseries, and the kids took quite some time selecting which gelato flavor out of the 96 on offer at Glacier Terre Adélice Lyon.