Issue No. 23

Where to stay
I stayed at the Residence Le Pré aux
Clercs, right in the heart of the city. From
here it's literally a 10 second walk to the
Place de la Libération. A boutique B&B
with just five rooms, including top floor
suite, I loved feeling like a local staying
here and being so close to the centre of
everything yet in a quiet side street.
Lovely breakfast provided in the
restaurant next door.
Getting around
There’s a good tram system and buses
too.
How to get there
The train from Paris takes just 1.5 hours
so it's an easy day trip destination. But,
you don’t want to just go for one day –
two is much better as there’s simply so
much to see and do.
Useful websites
Dijon tourist office; Burgundy tourist
office; www.france.fr
12 food specialities you should try in Dijon
- Boeuf bourguignon – here’s how to make
this classic dish at home
- Ouefs en meurette, eggs poached in wine.
- Jambon persille, ham with a jellied, herby
lauyer
- Gingerbread – interesting fact, it’s made
with anis, not ginger!
- Nonettes – here’s how to make “little
nuns” cakes at home
- Poulet Gaston Gerrard - story of how the
mayor of Dijon invited people for dinner
and his wife cooked chicken dish but
messed up the recipe. She mixed mustard,
cream and Comte cheese ... here’s how to
make it at home.
- Brioche with pink praline
- Kir with Cassis made with white wine, Kir
Royale with Champagne and Cassis (a
blackcurrant liqueur of Burgundy).
- Brillat Savarin, soft cheese, created in
1890 and made year round in Burgundy.
- Epoisses, a very smelly cheese,
apparently Napoleon Bonaparte's
favourite.
- Burgundy snails…
- Gougeres – okay they may not have
originated here but – the people of Dijon
absolutely love them and the boulangeries
all stock them because alongside
gingerbread, they’re de rigeur with aperitifs
in Dijon!