This dinner at the Bouchon des Cordeliers in Lyon was the occasion to discover a nice bouchon, good and very lively.

During my last stay in Lyon I had tried a traditional restaurant that was a bit disappointing and another simple and creative one that was very convincing, this time I promised myself to try a real bouchon. On the other hand, as I booked at the last minute again, many were already full but I finally had a late reservation at the Bouchon des Cordeliers, a table that has a good reputation.

As a reminder, the list of articles about this trip to Lyon.

The concept of the Bouchon des Cordeliers

Nothing could be simpler: it is a typical Lyonnais “bouchon“, an estaminet where you can taste local specialities such as pike quenelles, “tablier de sapeur”, “tête de veau ravigote”….

In the kitchens we find the chef Cédric Garin who in a previous life officiated in a gastronomic restaurant awarded by the Gault et Millau.

The setting of the Bouchon des Cordeliers

It is a traditional old building with a room with exposed stone walls. On the other hand the ceiling painted in red gives it a touch of youth and modernity.

A very nice bar sits at the back of the room.

The menu

No surprise, it’s a simple, short menu, with all the local specialties you’d expect to find.

A nice wine list too.

The dinner

As soon as I arrived I was taken care of and accompanied to my table.

They bring me the menu with a plate of cold cuts.

The waiter in charge of the bar comes to ask me if I want to drink something. I’ll start with my usual sparkling water and a whiskey.

A very generously served whisky.

The contact is very good, he flits from table to table, addresses the customers as if he had known them for 10 years, jokes with them, you can feel a lot of energy and passion for the job. Really friendly.

The atmosphere in the restaurant is very lively.

I place my order and the dishes arrive quickly.

As a starter I took the pig’s feet and snails tatin.

Visually it’s beautiful but I have trouble finding the reference to the tarte tatin.

So there is pig’s feet, snails, parsley, all wrapped in bacon. It’s good, it tastes good and it tastes even better when you take the bacon at the same time. I might have liked it to be a little more spicy.

Then the pike quenelle with lobster sauce.

It has just been in the oven for 20 minutes and they recommend that I let it deflate a bit.

It’s really very good. The rice pilaf served with it is also perfectly cooked, but unfortunately there is not enough of it for the amount of (delicious) sauce.

I will then take a “cervelle de canut”.

Fresh and well spiced.

The service slows down a bit and while the dessert was ordered at the beginning of the meal, a waiter comes to clean the table and asks me if I want a coffee. I remind him that it is already ordered…. It’s never good when you change servers in the middle of a shift.

I had 3 courses in 1h40, now it will take 40 minutes for me to have dessert. All of a sudden I feel tired and I rather want to leave.

But my dessert eventually arrives. It’s a lemon pie.

Good, fine and light.

Finally my good mood returns and I will finish with a green chartreuse.

The staff

Very young, smiling, close to the customers.

The atmosphere

Very lively, lively restaurant, noisy when full, music sometimes a little too present. You either like it or you don’t.

Bottom line

For the food, a good little “bouchon”, for the atmosphere, a young and lively place. Too bad for the bug in the service.

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