Le 117 is a bakery restaurant in 2E, Lyon.
Le 117 on Rue Mercier in Lyon's 2e is the small artisan-bread counter where the country loaf and long-fermented baguettes sell out by midday.
Why locals love it: Small Rue Mercier counter, no signage, locals only know.
Tip: Country loaf sells out by midday; arrive before 11:00 Word-of-mouth is the only marketing.
Address: 117 Rue Mercier, 69002 Lyon
Le Bouchon Sully on Rue Sully in Lyon's 6e is Julien Gautier's 2014 labelled-bouchon with traditional Lyonnais specialities and a €21 lunch carte.
Why locals love it: On Rue Sully a block from the Tete d'Or park entry, well off the Vieux Lyon bouchon trail.
Tip: Closed Sunday; the lunch carte at €21 is the value play Word-of-mouth is the only marketing.
La Tete de Lard in Lyon's 1er near the Opera is the 2009 bouchon run by Bernard and Yoann Blanc, with checkered tablecloths, stone walls and a Label Bouchons.
Order: The brioche sausage with caramelised onions, then the blood sausage with apple.
Why locals love it: The Rue Desiree address is three blocks from the Opera but never on tourist maps; the dining room seats 40 and fills with Lyonnais office workers who treat it as their canteen.
Tip: Evening only Wed-Sat; two seatings at 19:00 and 21:30. Book a fortnight ahead.
Micro Sillon on Place Fernand Rey in Lyon's 1er is the natural-wine bar and cave a manger that lives on local reputation, with a chalkboard menu and a tight.
Order: Whatever the chalkboard shows; the natural-white by the glass is the opening move.
Why locals love it: Place Fernand Rey is a small square most visitors walk through without stopping; the 20-cover room inside does not advertise, takes no walk-ins and fills on word of mouth alone.
Tip: Closed Sunday-Tuesday; book ahead via Instagram; small room.
Morfal on Rue Hippolyte-Flandrin in the 1er is Steven Thiebaut-Pellegrino's small-plates room, the successor to Arnaud Laverdin's Bijouterie at the same.
Order: The dim sum trio at lunch, then the chef's small-plates tasting at dinner.
Why locals love it: Tucked on Rue Hippolyte-Flandrin in the 1er between Halles de la Martiniere and Place Sathonay.
Tip: Lunch books quicker than dinner; closed Sunday-Monday Word-of-mouth is the only marketing.
Bufe on Rue de Cuire in Lyon's 4e is the neighbourhood bistro for the Croix-Rousse plateau crowd, with a market-driven blackboard and a price point.
Order: Whatever is on the blackboard; a glass of natural Beaujolais alongside.
Why locals love it: Rue de Cuire sits a five-minute walk back from the Croix-Rousse market and draws a crowd of plateau regulars who prefer it over the noisier Boulevard options.
Tip: Closed Sunday-Monday; the back room is the quieter seating Word-of-mouth is the only marketing.
Les Mauvaises Herbes on Rue du Jardin des Plantes in Lyon's 1er is the vegetable-forward bistro on the Croix-Rousse slope, with a €24 set lunch.
Order: The herb-led starter, then the vegetable set as the main.
Why locals love it: The name (bad weeds) does the room no favours on first search; the Rue du Jardin des Plantes address is a quiet residential block that takes ten minutes from the Croix-Rousse.
Tip: Closed Sunday-Monday; lunch is the price-point entry Word-of-mouth is the only marketing.
