Cité internationale de la gastronomie de Lyon, Gastronomy museum in Hôtel-Dieu, Lyon, France
The Cité Internationale de la Gastronomie de Lyon is a gastronomy museum in a historic hospital building that presents exhibitions about cooking and food. The building contains several galleries and outdoor spaces where visitors can learn about French ingredients and cooking traditions.
The Cité occupies part of the old Hôtel-Dieu de Lyon, whose buildings date from the 16th to the 18th century. The museum opened on 19 October 2019, closed in July 2020 because of the Covid-19 crisis, and reopened on 21 October 2022 in a version reworked by the Comité Rabelais. Since January 2025 it has been reserved for private events.
The museum shows how food and cooking are part of everyday life in Lyon and what role local products play in the kitchen. The exhibitions help visitors understand how these traditions remain alive in the city's restaurants and markets today.
Since January 2025 the Cité has been reserved for private events and is no longer open or accessible to the general public, so it cannot be visited. It occupies 4,000 m² in the old part of the Hôtel-Dieu de Lyon, in the 2nd arrondissement, built between the 16th and 18th centuries. The apothecary rooms of the Charité and the former Hôtel-Dieu were kept and restored, with 300 pots displayed under the great dome.
The museum offers hands-on cooking demonstrations and tastings where local producers and chefs directly share their knowledge with visitors. These activities let visitors taste regional flavors and learn from experts working in the field.
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