In Clermont-Ferrand, chefs work with the best products from the region. Food is inspired by rural traditions and has brought to us many recipes which are interpreted and respected by the new generation: potée auvergnate, coq au vin from Chanturgue, gigot brayaude, truffade, pounti, pompe aux pommes.

Fresh water fish, pikeperch, salmon, trout or the uncommon char can all be found on menus, served with local vegetables such as porcini or St George’s mushrooms or the refined Le Puy lentils. Blueberries picked painstakingly with large wooden combs are used to make delicious tarts...

Colourful market stalls reflect the best of the products made in the Auvergne. Dry salted ham and sausages have wonderful flavours. The reputation of the local cheeses is international: Five AOP (Protected Designation of Origin) cheeses – Saint-Nectaire, Cantal, Bleu d’Auvergne, Fourme d’Ambert and Salers, take pride of place in the market halls and restaurants. Fruit jellies are a speciality more specifically from Clermont, renowned since the time of the Marquise de Sévigné. These are good souvenirs for you to take back home!

This is good hunting ground for antiques, as the city has many high-quality antique dealers, bric-a-brac traders, bookshops full of old books and flea markets, lined along the pedestrian streets.