‘Behind you, it’s not done yet, but it’s going to be a cafe.’ I’m standing in Lyon’s Hôtel-Dieu, mid-renovation, as builders rush about with just five weeks to go until the scheduled opening (19 October 2019) of the city’s long-awaited Cité Internationale de la Gastronomie. Opening manager Damien Blanchard looks nervous. ‘Will it be ready? I hope so.’
What is the Cité Internationale de la Gastronomie?
In 2010, UNESCO granted the French gastronomic meal ‘world intangible heritage’ status. France was encouraged by this to establish four international cities of gastronomy around the country. ‘It was a big thing to French people. In Lyon, we are the first.’ The other three will open in 2024 and each will have a theme: the one in Tours will revolve around human sciences, in Paris-Rungis it will be markets, in Dijon the focus is on wine. Here in Lyon, the theme is health. Fittingly, the Hôtel-Dieu, founded in 1443, was a hospital until 2010.
Read the full article in Lonely Planet here.
