French food markets are a category of pleasure that transcends easy description. Indoor or outdoor, a French market is French culture on full display: a communal love of eating and sharing, pride in growing and producing great food, family gatherings and business traditions, artistry of display and attention to every meticulous detail. In this new scene I'm spotlighting the fabulous Les Halles de Lyon, a true wonderland of taste, sight, and smell that is at once a venerable French market and the food court of your dreams.
My on-site sketch was done on an October trip starting in Strasbourg, traveling through Alsace into Burgundy with Lyon as a vital linchpin of the trip. We knew Lyon was considered one of the meccas of French cuisine, but Les Halles still managed to take us by surprise. It is new rather than old, in a shiny new building (2004) and billed as a 'haut-lieu des papilles' (a pilgrimage site for the taste buds.) Les Halles de Lyon is named for Paul Bocuse, favorite son of Lyon, and also pays homage to the famous woman chefs who did so much to put Lyon on the food map (Les Meres de Lyon).
Once inside, your battle begins, and what a battle. There is NOTHING in that jewelry store of culinary excellence that will not tempt you or make you ravenous. Every aisle sparkles with good taste(s).
My progress through the scene started as always with blocks of color defining the space, but I couldn't wait to get to the sausages! This merchant, Maison Gast, is one of a number of Alsatian vendors at Les Halles, specializing in choucroute (a hearty pile of pork and sauerkraut) and all that goes with it. Their display is so colorful and beautiful it's hard not to walk away with your arms spilling with sausage.
The tables in the foreground of my sketch refer to another specialty of the Lyon market - seafood. Wine too, of course - this is Burgundy. Lunch is a perfect time to visit, for one's own pleasure, but also to see the conviviality of groups laughing and chatting, digging into heaping platters of oysters, shrimp, lobster, and crab, or sharing perfectly arranged boards of cheese and charcuterie.
https://www.halles-de-lyon-paulbocuse.com
Have you been to Lyon? I'd love to hear what you think!
The tables in the foreground of my sketch refer to another specialty of the Lyon market - seafood. Wine too, of course - this is Burgundy. Lunch is a perfect time to visit, for one's own pleasure, but also to see the conviviality of groups laughing and chatting, digging into heaping platters of oysters, shrimp, lobster, and crab, or sharing perfectly arranged boards of cheese and charcuterie.
https://www.halles-de-lyon-paulbocuse.com
Have you been to Lyon? I'd love to hear what you think!
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