Chef Gregory CuilleronLunch set €28, dinner and Saturday lunch €41Book 1 week ahead
Cinq Mains at 12 Rue Monseigneur Lavarenne in Vieux Lyon is the Saone-front table that Gregory Cuilleron runs with his brother Thibault, awarded a Michelin.
Order: The €41 evening tasting set, paired by the half-glass with the natural Beaujolais.
Tip: Open Tue-Sat lunch and dinner; book the €28 lunch a week ahead for the value play.
Chef Mathieu Viannay€195Book 3 weeks ahead
La Mere Brazier in Lyon's 1er is the restaurant Eugenie Brazier opened in 1921 and Mathieu Viannay now runs at two-star level on Rue Royale.
Order: Volaille de Bresse demi-deuil with the original 1933 service.
Tip: Lunch is half the dinner price; the dining room is the original 1921 one.
Chef Takao Takano€165 to €245Book 4 weeks ahead
Takao Takano in Lyon's 6e is the two-star Japanese-French tasting room on Rue Malesherbes, with a 22-seat dining room cooking six and nine-course sets.
Order: The nine-course tasting; the wine pairing is the move.
Tip: Lunch on Wed-Fri is the easier seating; closed Sunday and Monday.
Chef Olivier Couvin€295 to €445Book 6 weeks ahead
Paul Bocuse's L'Auberge du Pont de Collonges sits on the Saone north of Lyon, the dining room that held three Michelin stars from 1965 to 2020.
Order: Soupe aux truffes VGE, the 1975 dish for Valery Giscard d'Estaing, still on the carte.
Tip: A taxi from central Lyon takes 25 minutes; the suburb is unfit for walking back.
Chef Christian Tetedoie€105 to €175Book 2 weeks ahead
Tetedoie on the Fourviere hill above Lyon's old town is Christian Tetedoie's one-star dining room with a glass-walled view across the Saone to the city below.
Order: The five-course Saveurs tasting; the Bresse poultry course is the highlight.
Tip: Reserve a window seat; the cheaper bistro Phosphore sits beside it.
Chef Gaetan Gentil€89 to €159Book 2 weeks ahead
Prairial in Lyon's 2e Confluence is Gaetan Gentil's one-star vegetable-forward dining room on Place Hubert Mounier, with a tasting menu rooted in foraged.
Order: The vegetable tasting; ask for the herbal-juice pairing instead of wine.
Tip: Closed Sunday-Tuesday; the lunch menu is half the price of dinner.