Here we are in our little Renault Clio traveling the back roads of France when the giant chickens advertising the famous poulet de Bresse start to appear on giant billboards. Yes, even Peter Malle has sought out these tasty morsels that grind happily on the field; we would follow in his footsteps pretty big.
The search begins
But where do you find the quintessential Bresse chicken in a restaurant when you haven’t done your research? Ah, therein lies the problem. We were heading south towards the big city of Bourg-en-Bresse on the N479 but then, as if it were a sign of a higher power, we saw what we were looking for: a huge chicken painted on a sign in front of a restaurant called La Maison. du Poulet de Bresse . Perfect. Then we noticed a tour bus parked next to it. You can’t have it all.
Just down the street, we found a Logis de France called Le Lion D’Or, a comfortable inexpensive country inn in the village of Romenay, north of Bourg en Bresse , where chickens are brought to market. The rooms were less than 50 euros and the restaurant also serves Poulet de Bresse. ( Tip : If you’re looking for good value accommodation, look for the Logis de France banner.)
That night we walked to La Maison du Poulet de Bresse . We were the only people in the restaurant. The food, however, was excellent. I had my Chicken Bresse in a cream sauce and morels, and Martha had her chicken in a red wine sauce with an egg on top. I don’t know which came first. Sandra and Raphael Duclos run La Maison du Poulet de Bresse, and in my opinion they have done an excellent job.
Yes, they tasted different than the skinny chickens you get in a plastic sack at Safeway. They should, as our research found that a chicken Bresse in a French supermarket was 17 euros. Steep. But, if you like the taste of a chicken, it’s worth it.
Bresse chickens are treated like good wine. They have a denomination, a particular place where they come from, and they are a particular race. In addition, they can eat real food and walk in the countryside, all regulated by law.
Romenay is located in southern Burgundy, in the Saone-et-Loire region of France, northeast of the city of Macon. Paris is 392 kilometers to the north and Lyon 74 km to the south. The region is a pleasant, non-touristy place to visit, offering 20 castles open to the public, sixty museums, and various historical and prehistoric sites. The nearby towns along the Saone and Seille rivers are quite picturesque, and boat trips are popular in the region.
Around Romenay: the village of Cuisery
The town of Cuisery, northeast of Romenay, is called the “Town of Books” because many of the medieval town’s shops sell books, from early editions to collectibles. Oddly enough, Cuisery was not always so book-inclined, it only became a village village in 1999, but now has 10 booksellers and 4 book artisans (former printers, engravers and calligraphers, genealogists, and local history exhibition ). For an interesting report on book cities, from which previous issues were drawn, see Paul McShane’s paper on book cities around the world for the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust of Australia.
The city also has a gourmet restaurant and a hotel on the main street called Hostellerie Bressane that serves local cuisine and offers well-appointed rooms at a reasonable cost. There is also an interesting church, the Notre Dame de Cuisery that dates back to the 16th century.